Linking University Campus Green Space and Students’ Mental Health and Well-Being: A Systematic Literature Review

Abstract

The positive impact of urban green space on human mental health and well-being has become a consensus in the fields of environment and health research. Due to the increasing pressure faced by contemporary university students and the worsening mental crises, university campus green space, as a particular type of urban green space, have received increasing attention. This study reviews the evidence on the effects of university campus green space on students' mental health and well-being. A systematic search of WOS databases yielded 715 articles, of which 25 articles were included in the review. We extracted useful information from 25 studies. By summarizing and analysing the information, three main questions involving each step of an ecosystem services framework on nature and mental health were addressed. In terms of natural and environmental features, there was adequate evidence for association between landscape types and subjective landscape quality and mental health and well-being, while evidence for association between objective landscape quality and mental health and well-being was inadequate. In terms of exposure, there was adequate evidence for association between visit frequency and mental health and well-being. In terms of experience, evidence for association between types of activity and mental health and well-being was limited. University campus green space has positive associations with students' mental health and wellbeing (perceived restoration, increased positive emotion and lower negative emotion). Future research needs to develop more effective and robust landscape quality assessment instruments and use stronger research designs to improve the strength of evidence.