Abstract

This chapter briefly describes six frameworks that offer perspective on the relationships between biodiverse natural environments and mental well-being. The aim of this chapter is to provide an overview of these frameworks to enable theoretical grounding of future biodiversity and mental well-being studies. The frameworks are largely from the field of environmental psychology and represent the majority of theories used in biodiversity and health research (The Preference Matrix; fractal geometry; the Biophilia Hypothesis; Stress Reduction Theory; Attention Restoration Theory; and Ecosystem Service Cascade Model). A general overview of each framework discusses its conceptualisation of biodiversity and mental well-being outcomes, with supporting empirical research. The chapter then summarises the six frameworks with regard to their hypotheses for biodiversity and mental well-being.

Highlights

  • Biodiversity affects human health and well-being in a variety of ways (Lindley et al Chap. 2; Cook et al Chap. 11, both in this volume)

  • The aim of this chapter is to provide an overview of these frameworks to enable theoretical grounding of future biodiversity and mental health and well-being studies

  • Restoration refers to the recovery of physiological or psychological resources that have been diminished through the demands of dealing with everyday life (Hartig et al 2011)

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Summary

Introduction

Biodiversity affects human health and well-being in a variety of ways (Lindley et al Chap. 2; Cook et al Chap. 11, both in this volume). In addition to these impacts of biodiversity on physical health, biodiverse environments affect mental health This chapter briefly describes six of the most widely used frameworks that offer perspective on the relationships between biodiverse natural environments and mental health and well-­ being, and related empirical research. These frameworks include the Preference Matrix; fractal geometry; the Biophilia Hypothesis; Stress Reduction Theory; Attention Restoration Theory; and the Ecosystem Service Cascade Model. The final section summarises these six frameworks and discusses a way forward

Environmental Preference
Aesthetic Model of Preferences
Preference Matrix
Connection to Biodiversity in the Preference Matrix
Fractal Geometry and Visual Fluency
Connection to Biodiversity with Fractals
Fractal Dimension and Preference
Fractal Dimension and Restorative Outcomes
Biophilia Hypothesis
Connection to Biodiversity in the Biophilia Hypothesis
Theories of Restorative Environments
Stress Reduction Theory (SRT)
Connection to Biodiversity in the SRT
Attention Restoration Theory (ART)
Connection to Biodiversity in the ART
Ecosystem Services Cascade Model
Connection to Health and Well-being in the Ecosystem Service Cascade Model
Discussion
Conclusion
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