Connectedness to nature, mental health, and wellbeing

Connectedness to nature, mental health, and wellbeing

Research has shown that spending time in nature has health related benefits (e.g., cardiovascular, weight), including psychological benefits. Psychological benefits have been theorised to come from our innate need to connect with nature (biophilia hypothesis), lack of requirement to sustain direct attention (attention restoration hypothesis), or the stress-reducing effects of spending time in an unthreatening nature enviroment (stress reduction hypothesis). In addition to these hypotheses, researchers have been exploring how feeling connected to nature may be related to mental health and wellbeing benefits.

Our work explores these factors through both considering the role of hands on engagement with science learning outdoors and the role of spending time in and noticing the natural habitats around us.

Find out more about our work by clicking on the links below:

Interested in getting involved, contact Prof Dawn Watling.