Biodiverse urban forests, happy people: Experimental evidence linking perceived biodiversity, restoration, and emotional wellbeing

《Biodiverse urban forests, happy people: Experimental evidence linking perceived biodiversity, restoration, and emotional wellbeing》

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作者: T.P.L. Nghiem;K.L. Wong;L. Jeevanandam;C.c. Chang;L.Y.C. Tan;Y. Goh;L.R. Carrasco

关键字: Ecosystem services;Urban parks;Subjective wellbeing;Environmental psychology;Stress reduction theory;Attention restoration theory

作者单位: Department of Biological Sciences, National University of Singapore, 14 Science Drive 4, Singapore, 117543, Singapore;Department of Psychology, National University of Singapore, 9 Arts Link, Singapore 117570, Singapore;School of Psychology and Counselling, University of Southern Queensland, Ipswich Campus, 11 Salisbury Rd, Ipswich, Queensland, 4305, Australia;Department of Biological Sciences, National University of Singapore, 14 Science Drive 4, Singapore, 117543, Singapore;Department of Psychology, National University of Singapore, 9 Arts Link, Singapore 117570, Singapore;School of Psychology and Counselling, University of Southern Queensland, Ipswich Campus, 11 Salisbury Rd, Ipswich, Queensland, 4305, Australia

摘要: Here we investigate whether perceived biodiversity is linked to emotional wellbeing, taking into account the individual level of connection to nature, and whether such relationship is mediated by perceived restorativeness. We exposed participants to urban trails of different biodiversity levels and analysed the data using linear mixed-effects and structural equation models. Our results show that animal diversity and nature relatedness are positively linked to perceived restorativeness that, in turn, increases positive affect and decreases negative affect; thus suggesting that restoration mediates the effect of biodiversity on emotional wellbeing. We also found walk duration is linked to increased positive affect and reduced negative affect while crowdedness level in the trail has the opposite effect. Our results show an important link between urban biodiversity conservation and public mental health.