thaca, NY—Again and again, studies have shown that exposure to nature can improve human mental health and well-being. A new study from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology dug a little deeper, looking at what kind of nature experiences were associated with a greater sense of well-being during the COVID pandemic. Their findings, published in the journal People and Nature, suggest that enjoying nature close to home was associated with the greatest sense of well-being, compared to longer, more intense nature excursions, or nature experienced second-hand through various media.
"I think the thing that really calls to me from this work is the importance of just being able to have a bit of nature that's close by and that you can access even for a short time," said Tina Phillips, lead author and assistant director of the Center for Engagement in Science and Nature at the Cornell Lab.
Though nearby nature engagement came out on top as being associated with a higher overall positive outcome from exposure to nature, there was no correlation with loneliness. Indirect nature experiences through various forms of media had the least beneficial associations.
"I think the biggest surprise was that nature excursions were not correlated with better well-being," said Phillips. "Loneliness was worse for people who did more of those activities, the emotional impact of the pandemic was worse, and reported mental health was worse. The other thing which surprised me was that, across the board, age was the number one predictor of positive well-being outcomes from exposure to nature."
The authors surveyed more than 3,200 U.S. residents in October 2020, 6 months into the pandemic when many lockdowns were still in place. They asked people to rate their levels of loneliness, repetitive negative thoughts, mental well-being, and how emotionally affected they were by the pandemic.
The answers given were analyzed along with the frequency with which respondents participated in three types of nature engagement during the pandemic:
- Nearby nature: activities close to home, such as gardening, taking a walk, watching nature through a window, birdwatching;
