The effect of contact with natural environments on positive and negative affect: A meta-analysis
Abstract
A growing body of empirical research suggests that brief contact with natural environments improves emotional well-being. The current study synthesizes this body of research using meta-analytic techniques and assesses the mean effect size of exposure to natural environments on both positive and negative affect. Thirty-two studies with a total of 2356 participants were included. Across these studies, exposure to natural environments was associated with a moderate increase in positive affect and a smaller, yet consistent, decrease in negative affect relative to comparison conditions. Significant heterogeneity was found for the effect of nature on positive affect, and type of emotion assessment, type of exposure to nature, location of study, and mean age of sample were found to moderate this effect. The implications of these findings for existing theory and research are discussed, with particular emphasis placed on potential avenues for fruitful future research examining the effects of nature on well-being.
Integrity signals
Registry
Cites
Statistics
Claims the paper makes
Claims other papers make about this one
Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?
Affected populations may suffer from the repercussions that are tied to the decreased nature contact that is associated with WFS, through a deprivation of the opportunity to experience the anxiety and rumination reduction, social cohesion, and increases in positive affect that nature contact provides.
“Additionally, affected populations may suffer from the repercussions that are tied to the decreased nature contact that is associated with WFS, through a deprivation of the opportunity to experience the anxiety and rumination reduction [26–28], social cohesion [29, 30], and increases in positive affect [31–33] that nature contact provides.”
Cites
Measuring inconsistency in meta-analyses
Higgins, J. P. T., Thompson, S. G., Deeks, J. J., & Altman, D. G. (2003) · BMJ · doi:10.1136/bmj.327.7414.557 · Cited by 63,139 · see citing works
Development and validation of brief measures of positive and negative affect: The PANAS scales.
Watson, D., Clark, L. A., & Tellegen, A. (1988) · Journal of Personality and Social Psychology · doi:10.1037/0022-3514.54.6.1063 · Cited by 32,433 · see citing works
Borenstein, M., Hedges, L. V., Higgins, J. P. T., & Rothstein, H. R. (2009) · doi:10.1002/9780470743386 · Cited by 14,225 · see citing works
Duval, S., & Tweedie, R. (2000) · Biometrics · doi:10.1111/j.0006-341x.2000.00455.x · Cited by 14,099 · see citing works
On Happiness and Human Potentials: A Review of Research on Hedonic and Eudaimonic Well-Being
Ryan, R. M., & Deci, E. L. (2001) · Annual Review of Psychology · doi:10.1146/annurev.psych.52.1.141 · Cited by 11,567 · see citing works
Positive Psychology Progress: Empirical Validation of Interventions.
Seligman, M. E. P., Steen, T. A., Park, N., & Peterson, C. (2005) · American Psychologist · doi:10.1037/0003-066x.60.5.410 · Cited by 5,947 · see citing works
The combination of estimates from different experiments
Cochran, W. G. (1954) · Biometrics · doi:10.2307/3001666 · Cited by 5,380 · see citing works
Pursuing Happiness: The Architecture of Sustainable Change
Lyubomirsky, S., Sheldon, K. M., & Schkade, D. (2005) · Review of General Psychology · doi:10.1037/1089-2680.9.2.111 · Cited by 3,203 · see citing works
Fears, phobias, and preparedness: toward an evolved module of fear and fear learning
Öhman, A., & Mineka, S. (2001) · Psychological Review · doi:10.1037/0033-295x.108.3.483 · Cited by 3,147 · cited 1× · see citing works
“…affective responses to evolutionarily significant natural hazards and threats (e.g. snakes, spiders; see de Silva, Rachman, & Seligman, 1977; Öhman & Mineka, 2001), findings that are difficult to reconcile with the biophilia hypothesis which focuses exclusively on positive affective…”
BackgroundFixed-and random-effects models in meta-analysis.
Hedges, L. V., & Vevea, J. L. (1998) · Psychological Methods · doi:10.1037/1082-989x.3.4.486 · Cited by 2,977 · see citing works
Sin, N. L., & Lyubomirsky, S. (2009) · Journal of Clinical Psychology · doi:10.1002/jclp.20593 · Cited by 2,955 · cited 2× · see citing works
“This research indicates that engagement in a wide variety of activities, such as writing gratitude letters, practicing optimistic thinking, socializing, and mentally replaying pleasurable experiences, produces stable increases in SWB (Mazzucchelli, Kane, & Rees, 2010; Sin & Lyubomirsky, 2009).”
BackgroundThe cognitive benefits of interacting with nature.
Berman, M. G., Jonides, J., & Kaplan, S. (2008) · Psychological Science · doi:10.1111/j.1467-9280.2008.02225.x · Cited by 2,535 · cited 1× · see citing works
“…of ART, with participants indicating better cognitive functioning and more positive emotions following exposure to both real and virtual natural environments when compared to those exposed to urban or built environments (e.g. Berman et al., 2008; Berman et al., 2012; Hartig et al., 2003).”
BackgroundA systematic review of evidence for the added benefits to health of exposure to natural environments
Bowler, D. E., Buyung-Ali, L. M., Knight, T. M., & Pullin, A. S. (2010) · BMC Public Health · doi:10.1186/1471-2458-10-456 · Cited by 1,993 · see citing works
Meta-Analysis: Recent Developments in Quantitative Methods for Literature Reviews
Rosenthal, R., & DiMatteo, M. R. (2001) · Annual Review of Psychology · doi:10.1146/annurev.psych.52.1.59 · Cited by 1,780 · see citing works
Barton, J., & Pretty, J. (2010) · Environmental Science & Technology · doi:10.1021/es903183r · Cited by 1,592 · see citing works
Why Is Nature Beneficial?: The Role of Connectedness to Nature
Mayer, F. S., Frantz, C. M., Bruehlman-Senecal, E., & Dolliver, K. (2009) · Environment and Behavior · doi:10.1177/0013916508319745 · Cited by 1,298 · see citing works
The Nature of the View from Home: Psychological Benefits
Kaplan, R. (2001) · Environment and Behavior · doi:10.1177/00139160121973115 · Cited by 1,172 · see citing works
Writing meta-analytic reviews.
Rosenthal, R. (1995) · Psychological Bulletin · doi:10.1037/0033-2909.118.2.183 · Cited by 1,108 · see citing works
Interacting with nature improves cognition and affect for individuals with depression
Berman, M. G., Kross, E., Krpan, K. M., Askren, M. K., Burson, A., Deldin, P. J., Kaplan, S., Sherdell, L., Gotlib, I. H., & Jonides, J. (2012) · Journal of Affective Disorders · doi:10.1016/j.jad.2012.03.012 · Cited by 799 · see citing works
Lyubomirsky, S., Dickerhoof, R., Boehm, J. K., & Sheldon, K. M. (2011) · Emotion · doi:10.1037/a0022575 · Cited by 720 · see citing works
Publication Bias in Meta‐Analysis
Rothstein, H. R., Sutton, A. J., & Borenstein, M. (2005) · Publication Bias in Meta‐Analysis · doi:10.1002/0470870168.ch1 · Cited by 603 · see citing works
Lee, J., Park, B.-J., Tsunetsugu, Y., Ohira, T., Kagawa, T., & Miyazaki, Y. (2011) · Public Health · doi:10.1016/j.puhe.2010.09.005 · Cited by 517 · see citing works
Pretty, J., Peacock, J., Hine, R., Sellens, M., South, N., & Griffin, M. (2007) · Journal of Environmental Planning and Management · doi:10.1080/09640560601156466 · Cited by 509 · see citing works
Underestimating Nearby Nature: Affective Forecasting Errors Obscure the Happy Path to Sustainability
Nisbet, E. K., & Zelenski, J. M. (2011) · Psychological Science · doi:10.1177/0956797611418527 · Cited by 413 · see citing works
Health Benefits of Nature Experience: Psychological, Social and Cultural Processes
Hartig, T., van den Berg, A. E., Hagerhall, C. M., Tomalak, M., Bauer, N., Hansmann, R., Ojala, A., Syngollitou, E., Carrus, G., van Herzele, A., et al. (2011) · Forests, Trees and Human Health · doi:10.1007/978-90-481-9806-1_5 · Cited by 366 · cited 2× · see citing works
“Second, many of the theories concerning the effects of nature on well-being, described below, were developed in the mid-to-late twentieth century and have experienced little revision since then (Hartig et al., 2011).”
BackgroundBehavioral activation interventions for well-being: A meta-analysis
Mazzucchelli, T. G., Kane, R. T., & Rees, C. S. (2010) · The Journal of Positive Psychology · doi:10.1080/17439760903569154 · Cited by 319 · see citing works
Flagged first, then by citations
Cited by
Sorted by citations
Nature and mental health: An ecosystem service perspective
Bratman, G. N., Anderson, C. B., Berman, M. G., Cochran, B., de Vries, S., Flanders, J., Folke, C., Frumkin, H., Gross, J. J., Hartig, T., et al. (2019) · Science Advances · doi:10.1126/sciadv.aax0903 · Cited by 2,001 · see citing works
Martin, L., White, M. P., Hunt, A., Richardson, M., Pahl, S., & Burt, J. (2020) · Journal of Environmental Psychology · doi:10.1016/j.jenvp.2020.101389 · Cited by 928 · see citing works
The relationship between nature connectedness and eudaimonic well-being: A meta-analysis
Pritchard, A., Richardson, M., Sheffield, D., & McEwan, K. (2020) · Journal of Happiness Studies · doi:10.1007/s10902-019-00118-6 · Cited by 702 · see citing works
Corazon, S. S., Sidenius, U., Poulsen, D. V., Gramkow, M. C., & Stigsdotter, U. K. (2019) · International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health · doi:10.3390/ijerph16101711 · Cited by 269 · see citing works
Brosschot, J., Verkuil, B., & Thayer, J. (2018) · International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health · doi:10.3390/ijerph15030464 · Cited by 244 · see citing works
The affective benefits of nature exposure
Bratman, G. N., Olvera‐Alvarez, H. A., & Gross, J. J. (2021) · Social and Personality Psychology Compass · doi:10.1111/spc3.12630 · Cited by 177 · see citing works
Gaekwad, J. S., Sal Moslehian, A., Roös, P. B., & Walker, A. (2022) · Frontiers in Psychology · doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2022.750245 · Cited by 179 · see citing works
Beute, F., & de Kort, Y. A. W. (2018) · Health & Place · doi:10.1016/j.healthplace.2017.11.005 · Cited by 159 · see citing works
Richardson, M., McEwan, K., Maratos, F., & Sheffield, D. (2016) · Evolutionary Psychological Science · doi:10.1007/s40806-016-0065-5 · Cited by 155 · see citing works
Life satisfaction linked to the diversity of nature experiences and nature views from the window
Chang, C.-C., Oh, R. R. Y., Nghiem, T. P. L., Zhang, Y., Tan, C. L. Y., Lin, B. B., Gaston, K. J., Fuller, R. A., & Carrasco, L. R. (2020) · Landscape and Urban Planning · doi:10.1016/j.landurbplan.2020.103874 · Cited by 140 · see citing works
Of cricket chirps and car horns: The effect of nature sounds on cognitive performance
Van Hedger, S. C., Nusbaum, H. C., Clohisy, L., Jaeggi, S. M., Buschkuehl, M., & Berman, M. G. (2019) · Psychonomic Bulletin & Review · doi:10.3758/s13423-018-1539-1 · Cited by 134 · see citing works
Swami, V., Barron, D., & Furnham, A. (2018) · Body Image · doi:10.1016/j.bodyim.2017.12.006 · Cited by 94 · see citing works
A mobile VR-based respiratory biofeedback game to foster diaphragmatic breathing
Rockstroh, C., Blum, J., & Göritz, A. S. (2021) · Virtual Reality · doi:10.1007/s10055-020-00471-5 · Cited by 83 · see citing works
The role of social relational emotions for human-nature connectedness
Petersen, E., Fiske, A. P., & Schubert, T. W. (2019) · Frontiers in Psychology · doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2019.02759 · Cited by 74 · see citing works
Moving beyond disciplinary silos towards a transdisciplinary model of wellbeing: an invited review
Mead, J., Fisher, Z., & Kemp, A. H. (2021) · Frontiers in Psychology · doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2021.642093 · Cited by 71 · see citing works
Pasanen, T. P., Neuvonen, M., & Korpela, K. M. (2018) · Environment and Behavior · doi:10.1177/0013916517720261 · Cited by 70 · see citing works
Zhang, H., Zhang, X., Yang, Y., & Ma, J. (2024) · Journal of Sustainable Tourism · doi:10.1080/09669582.2023.2184314 · Cited by 71 · see citing works
Walking and Being Outdoors in Nature Increase Positive Affect and Energy
Fuegen, K., & Breitenbecher, K. H. (2018) · Ecopsychology · doi:10.1089/eco.2017.0036 · Cited by 63 · see citing works
Humphreys, A., Walker, E. G., Bratman, G. N., & Errett, N. A. (2022) · BMC Public Health · doi:10.1186/s12889-021-12411-2 · Cited by 53 · see citing works
- Authors
- McMahan, E. A., & Estes, D.
- Affiliations
- Western Oregon University (US)
- University of Wyoming (US)
- Corresponding author
- McMahan, Ethan A.
- ORCID
- Estes, David
- Venue
- The Journal of Positive Psychology
- Publisher
- Informa UK Limited
- Published
- 2015-01-13
- Volume
- 10
- Issue
- 6
- Pages
- 507-519
- ISSN
- 1743-9760 (ISSN-L)
- 1743-9779
- OpenAlex
- W1977048151
- Cited by
- 833
- References
- 26
- Citations by year
- 2026: 80 · 2025: 113 · 2024: 111 · 2023: 109 · 2022: 118 · 2021: 109 · 2020: 64 · 2019: 52 · 2018: 32 · 2017: 30 · 2016: 10 · 2015: 4
- FWCI
- 2.40
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- The Journal of Positive Psychology (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Health, Toxicology and Mutagenesis › Urban Green Space and Health
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Psychological Well-being and Life Satisfaction
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Recreation, Leisure, Wilderness Management
- Keywords
- nature exposure, natural environment, positive affect, negative affect, emotional well-being, emotional recovery, effect size heterogeneity, moderators of effect size, emotion measurement
About these checks
Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.
Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.
Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.
What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›
Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review
