What are the Benefits of Interacting with Nature?

Abstract

There is mounting empirical evidence that interacting with nature delivers measurable benefits to people. Reviews of this topic have generally focused on a specific type of benefit, been limited to a single discipline, or covered the benefits delivered from a particular type of interaction. Here we construct novel typologies of the settings, interactions and potential benefits of people-nature experiences, and use these to organise an assessment of the benefits of interacting with nature. We discover that evidence for the benefits of interacting with nature is geographically biased towards high latitudes and Western societies, potentially contributing to a focus on certain types of settings and benefits. Social scientists have been the most active researchers in this field. Contributions from ecologists are few in number, perhaps hindering the identification of key ecological features of the natural environment that deliver human benefits. Although many types of benefits have been studied, benefits to physical health, cognitive performance and psychological well-being have received much more attention than the social or spiritual benefits of interacting with nature, despite the potential for important consequences arising from the latter. The evidence for most benefits is correlational, and although there are several experimental studies, little as yet is known about the mechanisms that are important for delivering these benefits. For example, we do not know which characteristics of natural settings (e.g., biodiversity, level of disturbance, proximity, accessibility) are most important for triggering a beneficial interaction, and how these characteristics vary in importance among cultures, geographic regions and socio-economic groups. These are key directions for future research if we are to design landscapes that promote high quality interactions between people and nature in a rapidly urbanising world.

Who Cares? The Importance of Emotional Connections with Nature to Ensure Food Security and Wellbeing in Cities

“…Existing research on nature relatedness is currently biased toward high latitude, western, developed nations, which may lead to overlooking cultural as well as socio-economic influence on responses to interactions with nature [6,18,26]. This may be because "studies in western societies tend to focus on human quality of life and wellbeing, and maintaining the biological quality of the urban landscape, while those in non-western societies frequently emphasise subsistence, economic gain and developmental potential of interactions between people and nature" [6] (p. 160).…”

Aesthetic and Spiritual Ecosystem Services Provided by Urban Sacred Sites

“…Consequently, design and management of urban sacred sites need to be made aware of such and develop gardens to meet local congregant spiritual and aesthetic needs. Lastly, it needs to be appreciated that some of the benefits examined could also be appreciated by non-congregants, such as passers-by [51], termed by Keniger et al [19] as incidental interactions. Being among the first of its kind, it is important that the findings from this study are tested in other settings around the world spanning a range of contexts and extent of religious observance among urban populations.…”

“…These connections may often be reshaped or constrained in urban settings [50]. Nonetheless, urban green spaces provide a host of cultural ecosystem services and benefits [19], opportunities for recreation [9], social interaction [15], mental restoration [51], improved self-esteem, physical health and well-being [52] and reduced depression and anxiety [13].…”

A dimensão simbólica da vegetação na cidade: o caso de Santo André (SP)

“…Ao mesmo tempo em que a vegetação (KENIGER et al, 2013;LOUV, 2012;SELHUB e LOGAN, 2012;GRINDE;PATIL, 2009). As descobertas mais recentes da neurociência têm demonstrado que o contato com a vegetação afeta o ser humano, por mais que existam diferenças no tipo de resposta (SELHUB; LOGAN, 2012).…”

“…Os resultados obtidos nos permitem demonstrar que a vegetação dos parques urbanos é importante para seus vivenciadores e que a significação da vegetação está circunscrita ao espaço físico no qual ela se encontra, o que denota que não é qualquer tipo de planta situada na cidade que é valorizada e, neste sentindo concordamos com Keniger et al (2013) que mais pesquisas são necessárias para o entendimento de quais tipos de espaços e vegetação estão relacionados à sensação de bem-estar.…”