Restorative Environments Research Articles

Psychometric properties of two psychological restoration scales: translation, adaptation and validity evidences of the Brazilian versions (Propiedades psicométricas de dos escalas de restauración psicológica: traducción, adaptación y validez de las versiones brasileñas)

ABSTRACT Restorative environments refer to settings that allow for the recovery of depleted psychological resources. The potential to promote restoration can vary from place to place according to a setting’s characteristics. Two scales, Perceived Restorativeness Scale and Restoration Outcome Scale, have been applied to measure the restorativeness of places and restorative outcomes in the Global North. This study aims to translate, adapt and analyse the psychometric properties of these scales for their application in Brazil and to test their convergent validity. Our sample is composed of 566 adults (50.7% male) from the cities of Porto Alegre and São Paulo, with ages ranging from 18 to 85 years old. Both scales presented adequate internal consistency and model fit indexes. Moreover, the scales’ fit indexes were considered adequate regardless of participants’ gender and city of residence, which were tested through multigroup confirmatory factor analyses. With this contribution, we expect to help the expansion of research on restorative environments in the poorly studied Global South.

Physiological indicators and subjective restorativeness with audio-visual interactions in urban soundscapes

The present study aimed to identify the trends of changes in physiological indicators and subjective restorativeness in response to audio-visual interactions in the environment. Four scenarios types were presented using four different modalities (video-sound, image-sound, sound-only, and video-only; each modality was evaluated by independent groups of subjects). The physiological responses and subjective restoration of subjects were measured to assess the interactions between the audio-visual modalities. These data were also analysed to determine the physiological and subjective differences between dynamic and static visual presentations. We found that with visual modalities, the heart rate (HR), heart rate variability (HRV) calculated using the standard deviation of the NN intervals (SDNNHRV), high-frequency band in the HRV power spectrum (HFHRV), alpha reactivity on electroencephalography, and skin temperature (ST) decreased; however, the beta reactivity on EEG and skin conductance level (SCL) increased. With auditory modalities, the SDNNHRV, HF-HRV, ST, and respiration depth decreased; however, the respiration rate and SCL increased. Use of static images and sound to reproduce the natural environment evoked more physiological comfort and subjective restorativeness. These findings could provide physiological insights for the theory of the restorative environment.

Ethnic Differences in Environmental Restoration: Arab and Jewish Women in Israel.

Throughout the last few decades, plenty of attention has been paid to restorative environments that positively affect human psychological health. These studies show that restorative environments affect human beings emotionally, physiologically, and cognitively. Some studies focus on the cognitive effects of exposure to restorative environments. A widely used index that measures the cognitive response is the Perceived Restoration Potential Scale (PRS). Most studies employing the PRS have examined differences in human cognitive response between types of urban environments mainly urban versus green ones. We use Hartig’s questionnaire to expose differences between types of urban environments and ethnic groups. Variances between Arab and Jewish women were calculated in four environments: home; park; residential and central city environments. The effect of intervening variables such as exposure to thermal, noise, social and CO loads and social discomfort were tested. We find that dissimilar to urban typical built-up environments, green areas are highly restorative. Furthermore, differences in the restorativeness of different urban environments are low though significant. These differences depend on their function, aesthetic qualities, and amount of greenery. Ethno-national differences appear to affect the experience of restoration. While both ethnic related groups experienced a tremendous sense of restoration in parks, Jewish women enjoyed slightly higher levels of restoration mainly at home and in residential environments compared to Arab women who experienced higher sense of restorativness in central city environments. Jewish women experienced higher sense of being away and fascination. From the intervening variables, social discomfort explained 68 percent of the experience of restoration, noise explained 49 percent, thermal load explained 43 percent and ethnicity 14 percent of the variance in PRS.

Bracing Biophilia: When biophilic design promotes pupil’s attentional performance, perceived restorativeness and affiliation with Nature

AbstractBiophilic design is an architectural model that offers the possibility to create the Nature-based Innovative Learning Environment (ILE), which might support cognitive processes and stimulate affiliation with Nature. Bracing Biophilia is an exploratory research programme which verifies the effect of Nature-based ILEs on pupils’ attentional performance and affiliation with Nature. We compared a conventional learning environment with two Nature-based environments made according to biophilic design and the Biophilic Quality Index (BQI). The experimental observations spanned three school years; they were carried out within a conventional learning environment in the first year and in a biophilic designed one in the next two. Measurements, that is the administration of the Perceived Restorativeness Scale-children, the Continuous Performance test, and the Connectedness to Nature Scale-children, were deployed at regular intervals at three different times (autumn, winter, spring) of each school year. Results show that learning environments with biophilic design, in addition to being preferred and perceived as more restorative, are more effective in supporting pupils' attentional performance than conventional learning environments and, over time, strengthen the feeling of affiliation with Nature. A BQI certified biophilic design learning environment turns out to be the best of all indoor environments and just below the outdoor learning environment used as a comparison of biophilic design indoor environment. Although the objective limitation of this study is the number of pupils, the trend appears clear and cannot be attributed to pupils’ cognitive maturation processes. This case study allows us to appreciate the importance of the restorative learning environments with biophilic design capable of supporting the learning process and strengthening the affiliation with Nature.

Prospects of contemplative urban park from expert perspectives

The urban park is part of urban biodiversity that restore the diverse ecosystem to be resilient from rapid urbanisation impact. Also, it is an invented landscape that serves recreational opportunities as well as contemplation. However, significant evidence to measure the contemplativeness of Malaysian urban parks as an eco-psychological restoration resource is indistinct. Previously, the restorative environments have determined by personal opinions and evaluations of researchers without operationalising the empirical study on landscape design quality. This study evaluated Taman Tasik Shah Alam’s contemplativeness via expert evaluation assessed by ten Malaysian Landscape Architects. The assessment involves eight physical attributes using Contemplative Landscape Model criteria on 35 images via an online survey. Eventually, five of the most contemplative scenes are recognised as eco-psychological restoration resources to remedy psychological distress, including landscape composition types. It also highlights the necessary physical attributes of the urban park towards inventing the existing one into a contemplative environment for the betterment of communities. Thus, the contemplative landscape can serve as an antidote for people affected by psychological distress to contemplate themselves by exposing and experiencing well-preserved urban biodiversity.

Understanding the Perceived Benefits of Nature for Creativity

AbstractExperience of nature is widely linked to well‐being, including psychological restoration. Benefits to creativity have been explored in a limited number of studies which refer to theories of restorative environments as frameworks, but it is unclear which aspects of the environment and person–nature transactions are implicated in these processes. In this study, N = 20 members of the British public were interviewed regarding the relevance of natural environments for their personal and professional creative activities. Thematic analysis of interview transcripts revealed that cognitive, affective, and aesthetic appraisals were reported as directly relevant to creativity in nature, while environmental properties, sensory experiences, and the self were reported as informing these appraisals. Similarities to theories of restorative environments were observed in terms of the relevance of affect, cognition, and aesthetics. However, divergences also occurred, especially with regard to perceptions of arousal as beneficial for creativity, the importance of change in the environment, and the relevance of the self. Studies and theoretical modeling of relationships between nature and creativity should include these concepts, as well as those from theories of restorative environments.

A Participatory Interior Design Approach for a Restorative Work Environment: A Research-Intervention.

Exposure to environmental stressors has physical and psychological consequences. A demanding physical environment involves the allocation of additional attentional resources and an increase in psycho-physical stress. This study illustrates the process of a research-intervention aimed at designing a workplace, using a participatory design approach, and considering the beneficial effect of restorative environments in reducing stressful elements and improving well-being at work. Stressful situations occur daily, compromising proper functioning while causing the occurrence of physiological and/or psychological disorders. To be able to safeguard their psycho-physical well-being, people normally adopt coping strategies, i.e., remedies that allow them to cope and manage situations that generate stress. One of these strategies is the exposure to natural environments, which promotes recovery and sustains psycho-physical well-being. The restorative properties of natural environments have been scientifically proven. However, even built spaces can be thought of as restorative environments, in particular when certain conditions are granted. An applied science, known as biophilic design, provides useful indications from this perspective. This project involved 57 employees of the Italian site of an international non-governmental organization, in the transition from a site no longer adequate to a new site requiring renovation. In a first phase, a survey was conducted, to verify the perceived quality of the current workplace and to detect the unmet workers' needs, and to assess some other important psychological constructs connected with perception of restorativeness and well-being. In a second phase, the findings emerged from the survey was analyzed in depth through a participatory interior design process, together with an interdisciplinary team of architects, technicians of the organization and environmental psychology researchers. The team, together with some representatives of employees, worked together through possible scenarios, adopting a biophilic design approach, to design the new workplace. At the end, the same survey of the first phase was conducted, to detect differences in perceived quality in the new workplace compared to the previous one.

Can the Biophilia Hypothesis Be Applied to Long-Duration Human Space Flight? A Mini-Review.

The International Space Station (ISS) has around 3–5 crew members on-board at all times, and they normally stay on the ISS for about 5–7months in duration. Since March 2020, 170 long-duration space missions have occurred on the ISS. Thus, long-duration space missions are an integral part of space exploration and will only continue to expand in duration as missions to the Moon and Mars are on the horizon. However, long-duration space missions present several challenges to human crew members. Most of these challenges have been associated with physiological adaptation to microgravity, including motion sickness, muscle atrophy, and cardiovascular deconditioning. While not as well-studied, another major factor to consider when planning long-duration space missions is the psychological impact of the environment on the astronauts. Astronauts living in space will be unable to access natural landscapes and other environments found to have restorative effects on psychological stress and overall well-being. On top of being unable to access these restorative natural environments, astronauts will also be exposed to the stressful, unfamiliar environment of space. The purpose of this mini-review is to first summarize the literature related to stressors associated with space. Next, an overview of the large breadth of literature on the biophilia hypothesis and restorative environments will be provided, as these may serve as relatively simple and cost-effective solutions to mitigate the stress faced during long-duration space missions. Lastly, considerations related to the design of such environments in a space capsule as well as future directions will be presented.

Nature walks versus medication: A pre-registered randomized-controlled trial in children with Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder

Recent epidemiological studies have found that exposure to nature during childhood can substantially reduce the risk of developing ADHD. In 2009, Taylor and Kuo presented a highly influential study that found walking in a natural environment can improve cognitive performance in children with ADHD, through a process known as attention restoration. Their effect size was large and comparable to those of pharmacological treatments, although no studies to date have attempted to replicate the effect in comparison with medication under experimental conditions. We present a pre-registered (ACTRN12616000125426), double-blinded (medication), randomized-controlled trial that compared the effects of acute exposure to a natural (versus built) environment and medication (versus placebo) on Attention Network Task performance. Participants (n = 24; m = 10.5 years) experienced four treatment combinations (natural environment + medication; natural environment + placebo; built environment + medication; built environment + placebo) across four sessions in randomized order. Linear mixed models revealed improvements in accuracy, response speed, and response stability related to medication use. In contrast to Taylor and Kuo's (2009) findings, no improvements were found after exposure to nature. Explanations of divergent outcomes between the two studies may lie within adjustments made to the original protocol. Discussions of these changes and their implications for restorative environment research offer important insights for future studies exploring environmental effects on children with ADHD.

Effect of a Virtual Reality-Based Restorative Environment on the Emotional and Cognitive Recovery of Individuals with Mild-to-Moderate Anxiety and Depression.

In this study, restorative environment theory and virtual reality (VR) technology were combined to build different 3D dynamic VR interactive scenes. We discuss the effects of a VR restorative environment on the emotional and cognitive recovery of individuals with mild-to-moderate anxiety and depression. First, we built a VR restorative garden scene, divided into four areas: forest, lawn, horticultural planting, and water features. The scene was verified to have a good recovery effect in 26 participants. Then, 195 participants with mild-to-moderate anxiety and depression were selected as experimental subjects. Through psychological testing and EMG (Electromyography) and EEG (Electroencephalography) data feedback, we further explored the differences in the sense of presence in VR restorative scenes and their effect on individual emotional and cognitive recovery. The results showed that (1) both the restorative environment images and the VR scenes had a healing effect (the reduction in negative emotions and the recovery of positive emotions and cognition), with no difference in the subjective feeling of recovery among the different scenes, but the recovery score of the VR urban environment was higher than that of the natural environment (differing from the results in real environments); (2) a high sense of presence can be experienced in different VR scenes, and interactive activities in VR scenes can provide a great presence experience; (3) the recovery effects of VR restorative environment on emotion and self-efficacy are realized through the presence of VR scenes; (4) a VR restorative environment is helpful for the emotional improvement and cognitive recovery of individuals with mild-to-moderate anxiety and depression. VR urban scenes also have good recovery effects. In terms of cognitive recovery, self-efficacy improved significantly. In addition, from the perspective of EEG indicators, the VR restorative scene experience activated the prefrontal lobe, which is conducive to cognitive recovery in individuals with mild-to-moderate anxiety and depression. In terms of emotional improvement, negative emotions were significantly reduced in the different VR scene groups. In conclusion, we further explored ways to help individuals with mild-to-moderate anxiety and depression, in order to promote the development and application of mental health.

We Cannot Return to “Normal”: A Post-COVID Call for a Systems Approach to Implementing Restorative Justice in Education (RJE)

Given the collective trauma caused by COVID-19 global pandemic, it is more important than ever that schools look for ways to create safe, trauma-sensitive, and restorative learning environments. This article presents implementation science, readiness assessments, and ongoing evaluation as central and integral to all efforts that seek to transform punitive schools into restorative schools. The author first presents five elements of a school’s relational ecology as a framework for comparing a punitive school to a restorative school: structure, leadership, staff, students, and response to behavioral incidents. Then, the author calls upon school administrators, as well as restorative justice trainers who work with schools, to utilize a systems change approach that supports whole-school change. Without a full commitment to systems change, restorative justice in education (RJE) will continue to fall short of expectations and the educational system itself will continue to cause the same harm to marginalized students as it did prior to the pandemic.

Exploring the Links Between Biophilic and Restorative Qualities of Exterior and Interior Spaces in Leon, Guanajuato, Mexico.

The interactive role of the ecological, architectural, biophilic, and sensory qualities of outdoor and indoor spaces in the restorative experiences of urban inhabitants is little known. We analyzed the restorative influence on mood states and situational stress related to exposure to vegetation proportion, spatial extension, landmark salience, biophilic architecture, people density, street visual access, olfactory pleasantness, and noise of 65 public spaces in a Mexican city. The environmental qualities of these places were analyzed with multidimensional scaling (MDS), leading to eight space categories (e.g., historic squares with biophilic architecture, large parks, street scenes, and interiors with non-biophilic architecture). Ratings of the restorative potential, mood states, situational stress, olfactory pleasantness, and noise annoyance were evaluated on such places and modeled through a structural equation modeling (SEM). The model shows that the restorative influence of the environmental qualities on moods and stress was related to a decrease in experiences of negative moods and perceived stress, and an increase of positive mood states. Based on our findings, we discuss design guidelines, emphasizing the relevance of including vegetation and built elements with biophilic qualities to create restorative environments.

SDF-1α/OPF/BP Composites Enhance the Migrating and Osteogenic Abilities of Mesenchymal Stem Cells.

In situ cell recruitment is a promising regenerative medicine strategy with the purpose of tissue regeneration without stem cell transplantation. This chemotaxis-based strategy is aimed at ensuring a restorative environment through the release of chemokines that promote site-specific migration of healing cell populations. Stromal cell-derived factor-1α (SDF-1α) is a critical chemokine that can regulate the migration of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs). Accordingly, here, SDF-1α-loaded microporous oligo[poly(ethylene glycol) fumarate]/bis[2-(methacryloyloxy)ethyl] phosphate composites (SDF-1α/OPF/BP) were engineered and probed. SDF-1α/OPF/BP composites were loaded with escalating SDF-1α concentrations, namely, 0 ng/ml, 50 ng/ml, 100 ng/ml, and 200 ng/ml, and were cocultured with MSC. Scratching assay, Transwell assay, and three-dimensional migration model were utilized to assess the migration response of MSCs. Immunofluorescence staining of Runx2 and osteopontin (OPN), ELISA assay of osteocalcin (OCN) and alkaline phosphatase (ALP), and Alizarin Red S staining were conducted to assess the osteogenesis of MSCs. All SDF-1α/OPF/BP composites engendered a release of SDF-1α (>80%) during the first four days. SDF-1α released from the composites significantly promoted migration and osteogenic differentiation of MSCs documented by upregulated expression of osteogenic-related proteins, ALP, Runx2, OCN, and OPN. SDF-1α at 100 ng/ml was optimal for enhanced migration and osteogenic proficiency. Thus, designed SDF-1α/OPF/BP composites were competent in promoting the homing and osteogenesis of MSCs and thus offer a promising bioactive scaffold candidate for on-demand bone tissue regeneration.

The Effects of Different Natural Environment Influences on Health and Psychological Well-Being of People: A Case Study in Selangor

Background: People benefit from the recreational services provided by an urban corridor, urban park, and urban forest. Due to ongoing land-use interest and urban development, however, these natural environments are coming under increasing pressure. Simultaneously, the world is becoming increasingly urbanised, and living in cities has been linked to mental health issues. On the other hand, different natural environments are known to create healthier environments, and the need for effective restorative environments has never been greater. The purpose of the study was to compare the impacts of walking in different natural environments. Methods: I) Kota Damansara Community Forest Reserve, II) Mutiara Damansara Recreational Park, and III) the Urban Green Corridor along Jalan PJU 7/2 were used as control study sites in this study. Each site was visited only once by the study participants (40 women and 40 men). Walking for 30 min was a part of the experiment. To identify the psychological effects of different natural environments, the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale (DASS21), Profile of Mood States (POMS), Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS), and Restoration Outcome Scale (ROS) were utilised. Results: In all three natural environments, the restorative effects were found to increase significantly. Conclusion: The overall conclusion of the field experiment is that being in an urban green corridor can also provide a refreshing environment. In terms of stress reduction among working adults, the recreational park is sufficient, while urban-forested areas are more effective in improving mental health by minimising stress, anxiety, and depression.

코로나19 상황에서 자연기반 여행은 사람들의 여행행복을 증진시키는가?

With the global spread of COVID-19, there have been constraints on tourism behavior, which are increasing the negative emotion of tourists. To recover from this negativity, tourists are pursuing domestic nature-based travel as much as possible in the current situation. This study aims to empirically confirm whether natural tourist destinations have the effect on helping tourist recover from COVID-inspired negativity and if perceived happiness is enhanced for those who traveled to natural tourists destination during the COVID-19 pandemic situation. In order to test the hypothesized model, data were collected from an online survey from September 5th to September 19th. A total of 742 of 845 responses were used for empirical analysis. The results of the study are as follows. First, it was found that physical risk perception did not affect perceived restorative environment, while psychological risk perception and socio-environmental risk perception had an impact on perceived restorative environment. Second, it was found that the perceived restorative environment had an impact on perceived attention restoration. Third, it was found that the perceived attention restoration had an impact on travel happiness (subjective well-being). This study is meaningful in that it theoretically verified the importance and positive role of domestic nature-based tourist destinations in a psychologically negative state. Based on the results of the study, natural tourism destination development directions were proposed for tourism business corporales and public institutions.

The Temporal and Spatial Evolution of Ecosystem Service Synergy/Trade-Offs Based on Ecological Units

“Two ecological barriers and three shelters” (TEBTS), which has the effect of relieving ecological pressure, is the national ecological security pattern in China. Calculating the value of TEBTS ecosystem services, clarifying the synergy/trade-off relationships between ecosystem services, and maximizing the value of regional ecosystem services are of great significance for maintaining the security of the ecological civilization. At present, the research on ecosystem service synergy/trade-off has become the frontier field of ecology and related disciplines at home and abroad, and many research results have been obtained. However, there is still room and significance for continuing research to think about the synergy/trade-off relationship of ecosystems from the perspective of temporal and spatial heterogeneity: clarifying the spatial scope and spatial transmission characteristics of ecosystem service synergy/trade-off; exploring the trend of ecosystem service synergy/trade-off, and simulating the dynamic characteristics of natural factors affecting ecosystem services; and analyzing the characteristics of different spatial attributes that lead to the synergy/trade-off of ecosystem services. In this study, the Songhua River Basin (SRB), where the NFB is located, is used as the research area, the ecosystem services are simulated through the ecosystem assessment model, ecological unit (EU) is constructed as a research carrier, which is used to define the spatial scope of ecosystem services, and the influence of spatial characteristics and attribute characteristics on the change trend of the ecosystem service synergy/trade-off relationship is analyzed. The research found that water retention, soil conservation, and biodiversity did not change much from 2000 to 2015, and these ecosystem services have a greater value in the NFZ. The amount of carbon sequestration increased rapidly from 2010 to 2015. Crop production showed an increasing trend year by year. As the main grain production area, the Songnen Plain provides the main crop production function, which is greatly affected by humans. In the spatial characteristic, water retention, soil sequestration, and biodiversity present a very significant synergistic relationship, which is manifested in the obvious high-value aggregation characteristics in the NFZ, and crop production and the other four types of ecosystem services are in a trade-off relationship. At the time scale, the four types of ecosystem services, including water retention, soil conservation, biodiversity, and carbon sequestration, are synergistic, and crop production and water retention are synergistic. The vegetation types exhibiting a synergy/trade-off relationship are mainly broad-leaved forests, and the soil types are mainly luvisols and phaeozems. These EUs are mainly distributed in the NFZ and have spatial topological characteristics: the area and circumference of these EUs are smaller, the radius of gyration is also significantly smaller than that of other EUs, and the shape is more regular. By focusing on the spatial aggregation characteristics and changing trends of the ecosystem service synergy/trade-off and clarifying the influencing factors of the ecosystem service synergy/trade-off, the ecosystem services can be integrated, and the ecosystem can be optimized. Thus, the value of regional ecosystem services can be maximized, and a certain data foundation and theoretical support can be provided for major projects, such as ecological restoration and ecological environment governance, which is of great significance for improving the pattern of ecological security.

Estimating the Preservation Value of Wuyishan National Park from the Perspective of Bounded Rational Decision Making

Simplifying and popularizing the preservation values (valuation methods) of national parks—based on the premise of accuracy—shows stakeholders the importance of national parks, and is the basis for exploring sustainable use and development mechanisms. However, there are hypotheses biases, strategic biases, and starting point biases in regards to the existing evaluation methods. Therefore, based on the results of the contingent valuation method of research, under bounded rationality, this study uses the two-stage dichotomous choice contingent valuation and selects three methods to estimate the willingness to pay (WTP) for preservation at Wuyishan National Park. The results support that the two-stage contingent valuation method could effectively evade uncertainty with a “willingness to pay” decision making under bounded rationality, and factually reflect the real WTP. The results show that: (1) the average willingness to pay (truncated) of each household in Wuyishan National Park is CNY 609 (USD 93.90), which is similar to the actual average tourism expenditure of each household. (2) The cultural worldviews and perceived restorative environment have significant impacts on willingness to pay. (3) Comparing the preservation value of Wuyishan National Park with the actual financial input plays a positive role in manifesting the importance of Wuyishan National Park and attracting more financial input. The preservation value of Wuyishan National Park in the key market is about six times that of the basic market and one-third of that in the national market, which provides a theoretical basis for selecting the key tourism development market of Wuyishan National Park. (4) Those respondents believe that more funds should be put into protecting the national parks for their sustainable existence and bequeathing to future generations, which shows that the construction of the national park system is significant in improving natural values. This study attempted to provide theoretical support for improving non-market value and sustainable development of national parks.

A Study of the Influence of Campus Ecological Environment Integrated Art Education on Learning Attitudes and Effectiveness

Natural ecology is the basis of social development. The destruction of natural ecological environment would limit the development of society. Environmental issues have become the commonly concerned problems internationally and globally. Promoting the public knowledge and awareness of environmental problems as well as understanding of the correlations among living environment, resources, and humans through education would absolutely be urgent for educators. Campus environment is the best place for students’ ecological education and learning; therefore, a campus with good ecological environment would to-some-degree assist in the overall campus ecology. To maintain the overall balance between campus ecological environment and biological conservation, build natural landscape, and create aquatic and terrestrial habitats, traditional ecological environment engineering should be regulated to suit the sustainable development of ecological campus environment with biological conservation and ecological restoration environment. With college students in Guangxi as the research objects, total 288 students from two classes each in universities, as the experimental research objects, are preceded the 16-week (3 hours per week for total 48 hours) experimental teaching research. The research results conclude that 1.campus ecological environment integrated art education would affect learning motivation, 2.campus ecological environment integrated art education would affect learning effectiveness, 3.learning motivation presents significantly positive effects on learning effect in learning effectiveness, and 4.learning motivation shows remarkably positive effects on learning gain in learning effectiveness. According to the results to propose suggestions, it is expected to establish students’ identification and the successive belongingness through environmental integrated art education to assist students in overcoming the personality development stage for the positive psychological development.

Psychological Restoration and the Effect of People in Nature and Urban Scenes: A Laboratory Experiment

It is well-evidenced that exposure to natural environments increases psychological restoration as compared to non-natural settings, increasing our ability to recover from stress, low mood, and mental fatigue and encouraging positive social interactions that cultivate social cohesion. However, very few studies have explored how the inclusion of people within a given environment—either urban or natural settings—affect restorative health outcomes. We present three laboratory-based studies examining, first, the effect of nature vs. urban scenes, and second, investigating nature ‘with’ vs. ‘without’ people—using static and moving imagery—on psychological restoration and social wellbeing. Our third study explores differences between urban and natural settings both with vs. without people, using video stimuli to understand potential restorative and social wellbeing effects. Outcome measures across all studies included perceived social belonging, loneliness, subjective mood, and perceived restorativeness. Studies 1 and 2 both used a within group, randomized crossover design. Study 1 (n = 45, mean age = 20.7) explored static imagery of environmental conditions without people; findings were consistent with restorative theories showing a positive effect of nature exposure on all outcome measures. Study 2 compared nature scenes with vs. without people (n = 47, mean age = 20.9) and we found no significant differences on our outcome measures between either social scenario, though both scenarios generated positive wellbeing outcomes. Study 3, conducted on Amazon Mechanical Turk, employed an independent group design with subjects randomly assigned to one of four conditions; an urban vs. nature setting, with vs. without people. We explored the effect of moving imagery on psychological restoration (n = 200, mean age = 35.7) and our findings showed no impact on belonging, loneliness, or mood between conditions, but did show that—regardless of the inclusion of people—the nature settings were more restorative than the urban. There were no differences in psychological restoration between nature conditions with vs. without people. We discuss the implications for restorative environment research exploring social-environmental interactions.

“I’m here for recovery”: the eudaimonic wellness experiences at the Le Monastère des Augustines Wellness hotel

ABSTRACT This study uses Le Monastère des Augustines Wellness Hotel to explore healing seekers’ eudaimonic wellness experiences and how such experiences are conceptualized in alignment with their underlying transformative process in a restorative environment. Using participant observation, secondary data, and thirteen in-depth interviews with eight participants, four key elements regarding wellness hotel experience were identified: 1) the museum and its inspiring reflections; 2) the historical facilities and the power of quietness; 3) the wellness lifestyle and its lasting impacts; and 4) the religious encounters, caring staff, and feeling of being cared for. We further construct a four-stage transformative process of wellness experience: realization, involvement, transformation and appreciation.