Abstract
Both nature exposure and green exercise (GE) can improve health. However, there are no scales examining frequency of engagement; or that consider interaction with nature. There are also no scales assessing these variables during childhood. The aim of this study was to develop a modified (NES-II) and retrospective (RNES-II) version of the Nature Exposure Scale to incorporate GE and to examine their factor structure and reliability. Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) explored the factor structure of the scales; followed by confirmatory factor analysis to confirm the model fit. Fit indices for the one factor five item NES-II and RNES-II models identified by EFA were poor. Use of modification indices resulted in a good model fit; NES-II: χ(5, n = 385) = 2.638; χnormed = 0.879; CFI= 1.000; RMSEA < 0.001 with 90%CI = 0.000–0.082; SRMR = 0.009; AIC = 36.638. RNES-II: χ(2, n = 385) = 7.149; χnormed = 3.574; CFI = 0.995; RMSEA = 0.082 with 90%CI = 0.023–0.151; SRMR = 0.015; AIC = 43.149. Both models demonstrated very good reliability (α = 0.84; 89 respectively). These findings indicate that the scales can be used to assess current and retrospective nature exposure. However, due to the removal of item one, the authors recommend that the scales be named the ‘intentional nature exposure scale’ and ‘retrospective intentional nature exposure scale’.
Highlights
Introduction(e.g., sitting in a natural environment, gardening) [1], can improve mental wellbeing, attention and mood, reduce stress, lower morbidity and reduce cardiovascular disease risk [2,3,4]
Exposure to nature, that is “direct physical and/or sensory contact with the natural environment”(e.g., sitting in a natural environment, gardening) [1], can improve mental wellbeing, attention and mood, reduce stress, lower morbidity and reduce cardiovascular disease risk [2,3,4]
There is an emerging body of evidence indicating that connectedness to nature, defined as an individual’s “levels of feeling emotionally connected to the natural world” [12], is important for health and might mediate the health benefits derived from nature exposure [13,14]
Summary
(e.g., sitting in a natural environment, gardening) [1], can improve mental wellbeing, attention and mood, reduce stress, lower morbidity and reduce cardiovascular disease risk [2,3,4]. These benefits are derived from contact with natural spaces containing water [5]. Nature exposure has a beneficial impact on physical activity (PA), promoting participation in and higher intensities of exercise [6,7]. Public health policies should focus on encouraging nature exposure and participation in PA and on enabling individuals to develop connections with the natural environment
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