Nature and mental health: An ecosystem service perspective

Summary & key facts

This review looks at many studies about how spending time in nature affects mental health. The authors say that seeing, hearing, or being in green places and near water often improves mood, lowers stress, and can help thinking skills in the short term. Much of the evidence comes from lab tests, short outdoor experiments, and surveys that compare people who live near green space with those who do not. The paper also warns that many studies are only correlational, benefits vary between people, and we do not yet know how long the effects last, so more research is needed before we can say how nature should be used in health policy.

Key facts:

• Researchers reviewed lab studies, short field experiments, and population surveys about nature and mental health.
• Controlled lab and field experiments found that looking at or walking in natural settings can improve mood and reduce stress in the short term.
• Population studies find that people who live nearer to parks, street trees, gardens, or water often report better psychological well-being than those who do not.
• Some survey studies can be affected by other things, like income or neighborhood differences, so they do not prove cause and effect on their own.
• The authors say that short-term changes in mood from nature are now supported by experimental studies, but it is less clear whether these lead to long-term mental health improvements.
• Effects of nature contact are not the same for everyone. They can depend on age, culture, personal preference, job, and where someone lives.
• The paper suggests treating mental health benefits from nature as 'psychological ecosystem services' so these benefits can be included in planning and policy decisions.
• Because mental illness makes up a large part of global disability, the authors argue it is important to study whether increasing everyday contact with nature could reduce that burden.

Abstract

A growing body of empirical evidence is revealing the value of nature experience for mental health. With rapid urbanization and declines in human contact with nature globally, crucial decisions must be made about how to preserve and enhance opportunities for nature experience. Here, we first provide points of consensus across the natural, social, and health sciences on the impacts of nature experience on cognitive functioning, emotional well-being, and other dimensions of mental health. We then show how ecosystem service assessments can be expanded to include mental health, and provide a heuristic, conceptual model for doing so.

Topics

Land Use and Ecosystem Services Urban Agriculture and Sustainability Urban Green Space and Health

Categories

Environmental Science Health, Toxicology and Mutagenesis Physical Sciences

Tags

Archaeology Artificial intelligence Biology Cognition Computer science Ecology Ecosystem Ecosystem health Ecosystem services Empirical evidence Environmental resource management Environmental science Epistemology Geography Machine learning Mental health Natural (archaeology) Perspective (graphical) Philosophy Psychiatry Psychology Urbanization Value (mathematics)

Conditions & symptoms

Anxiety Depression Anxiety or worry Feeling disconnected from others Lack of energy or motivation Sadness or low mood