The Effects of the Natural Environment on Attention Restoration: Part II
Rebecca M. Daniel, B.A., Lisa J. Emery, Ph.D.
10
25
8
20
15
10
4
2
0
0
Pre-Restoration
Post-Restoration
Pre-Restoration
Post-Restoration
Hypothesis 1: There were no measured differences between locations of
attention restoration in the context of SMT or BDS correct responses prepost-restorative experience.
Solarium
Whitewater Café
Solarium
30
Whitewater Café
16
14
Negative Affect
25
20
15
10
5
12
10
8
6
4
2
0
0
Pre-Restoration
Post-Restoration
Pre-Restoration
Post-Restoration
Hypothesis 2: There were no measured differences in either positive or
negative affect between conditions pre- post- restorative experience.
No Prior MH Diagnosis
Prior MH Diagnosis
Solarium
18
Whitewater
Solarium
18
16
16
14
14
Negative Affect
Solarium
12
10
8
6
Whitewater
12
10
8
6
4
4
Whitewater Café
Whitewater Café
6
5
2
2
0
0
Pre-Restoration
Pre-Restoration
Post-Restoration
Post-Restoration
Exploratory analysis: Participants who reported a previous MH diagnosis in
the Solarium reported a greater decrease in negative affect than those in
Whitewater Café.
Prior MH Diagnosis
No Prior MH Diagnosis
Solarium
Whitewater
35
30
30
25
25
SMT Correct
Whitewater Café
SMT Correct
Participants
• Participants consisted of 58 undergraduate
psychology students (44 females and 14 males) with
an average age of 19.26. Participants signed up via an
online research database (SONA). Year in college
ranged from freshman to junior.
Measures
• Search and Memory Test (SMT; Smith & Miles, 1987):
Participants searched 18 lines of 59 letters for
specific target letters for ten minutes.
• Backwards Digit Span Task (BDS): Participants recited
strings of random numbers in reverse order,
increasing in difficulty, until a discontinue criteria was
met.
• Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS;
Watson, Clark, & Tellegen, 1988): a 10-item selfreport measure aimed at measuring positive and
negative affect.
Solarium
30
35
METHOD
Whitewater Café
BDS Score
SMT Number Correct
Procedure
Participants met the experimenter at a conference
room in the Student Union on-campus and completed
a series of measures aimed to induce directed
attention fatigue (e.g., the PANAS, a backwards digit
span, the SMT). Participants were then randomly
assigned to sit quietly for 10 minutes in either a
naturalistic (e.g., the Solarium) or less-naturalistic
environment (e.g., Whitewater Café; described below).
Next, participants returned to the conference room and
completed the same measures as before as well as
additional measures (e.g., DASS-21; Henry & Crawford,
2009; Adult ADHD Self-Report Scale [ASRS-v1.1];
Kessler et al., 2005; and a demographic questionnaire).
Solarium
Positive Affect
Attention Restoration Theory (ART) suggests that being
immersed in or simply just viewing natural settings (e.g.,
lush vegetation and running water) can promote both
positive mood and restoration of cognitive resources (e.g.,
attention; Kaplan, 2001; Böök, Garvill, Olsson, & Gärling,
1996). Specifically, Berman, Jonides, and Kaplan (2008)
found that after walking 2.8 miles in an outdoor natural
setting, undergraduate participants experienced affective
and cognitive improvements as measured by a backwards
digit span task and the PANAS (Watson et al., 1988). Hartig
et al. (1996) found that participants who simply looked at
pictures of nature in comparison to participants who
looked at pictures of an urban area showed evidence of
attention restoration, though did not experience any
difference in reported mood. It is important to note that
the majority of previous research included an exercise
component to their nature intervention or had
participants simply view pictures. The current study
utilized a hybrid environment that involved quiet sitting in
an environment with living trees, running water, and a
view of the outdoors.
RESULTS
METHOD, CONT.
Negative Affect
INTRODUCTION
20
15
10
15
10
5
0
0
Post-Restoration
Whitewater
20
5
Pre-Restoration
Solarium
Pre-Restoration
Post-Restoration
Exploratory analysis: Participants who reported a previous MH diagnosis in the
Solarium reported a greater increase in SMT responses than those in
Whitewater Café.
Analysis
• We first performed a 2 (Condition) x 2 (Time Point)
mixed Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA) on the SMT
Correct scores, with number of people present and
playing of music included as covariates.
• We then performed a 2x2 mixed ANCOVA on BDS
scores, with the same covariates listed above.
• Finally, we performed a 2x2 mixed ANCOVA on positive
and negative PANAS scores, also including the
covariates listed above.
Reprints may be obtained at agelabs.appstate.edu
CONCLUSIONS
• The current study failed to replicate previous research
in that simply being immersed in and viewing natural
elements did not facilitate attention restoration or
affective improvements in the sample as a whole
• Participants surrounded by natural elements with a
previous MH diagnosis did, however, experience
attention restoration and affective improvements
• Individuals without a MH diagnosis may need the
component of exercise to experience attention
restoration while in natural environments