Summary:
Exposure to natural environments has been associated with improvements in psychological wellbeing, including reduced stress and improved mental health. Two key theories explain these effects: Stress Reduction Theory which suggests that nature can trigger automatic physiological responses that help reduce stress, while the Attention Restoration Theory proposes that natural settings help restore cognitive capacity by allowing the brain to recover from sustained attention demands. Although these benefits are well documented, the underlying mechanisms are still being explored. This randomised controlled trial investigated how exposure to natural environments influences brain activity and emotional responses. Fifty-three young adults were randomly assigned to view either images of green spaces or urban environments. Participants completed resting-state electroencephalography (EEG) recordings before and after viewing the images. Compared with exposure to urban images, viewing natural environments was associated with increased positive emotions and greater feelings of energy and vitality. The study also identified positive changes in brain connectivity, with nature exposure reducing connectivity with brain networks associated with emotional distress and negative emotional processing. These findings suggest that exposure to natural environments may promote emotional restoration through measurable changes in brain function.
Read the Complete Article >
Abstract:
Introduction: Despite the well-established evidence supporting the restorative potential of nature exposure, the neurophysiological underpinnings of the restorative cognitive/emotional effect of nature are not yet fully understood. The main purpose of the current study was to investigate the association between exposure to nature and electroencephalography (EEG) functional connectivity in the distress network.Methods: Fifty-three individuals (11 men and 42 women; mean age 21.38 ± 1.54 years) were randomly assigned to two groups: (i) a green group and (ii) a gray group. A slideshow consisting of images depicting natural and urban scenarios were, respectively, presented to the green and the gray group. Before and after the slideshow, 5 min resting state (RS) EEG recordings were performed. The exact low-resolution electromagnetic tomography (eLORETA) software was used to execute all EEG analyses.Results: Compared to the gray group, the green group showed a significant increase in positive emotions (F1; 50 = 9.50 p = 0.003) and in the subjective experience of being full of energy and alive (F1; 50 = 4.72 p = 0.035). Furthermore, as compared to urban pictures, the exposure to natural images was associated with a decrease of delta functional connectivity in the distress network, specifically between the left insula and left subgenual anterior cingulate cortex (T = −3.70, p = 0.023).Discussion: Our results would seem to be in accordance with previous neurophysiological studies suggesting that experiencing natural environments is associated with brain functional dynamics linked to emotional restorative processes.
Article Publication Date: 20/04/2023
DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1171215
