Document Type
Undergraduate Thesis
Publication Date
Spring 5-1-2024
Journal
Undergraduate Honours Theses
Abstract
Interactions with nature have been associated with several restorative benefits, including decreased stress and increased positive affect. However, existing research has mostly relied on perceptual imagery (e.g., the sights and sounds of nature) to show nature’s restorative qualities. As such, the ability of more conceptual representations of nature to elicit restorative effects remains understudied. Furthermore, mindfulness has been associated with enhanced positive affect, and increased connectedness to nature, meaning that mindfulness may be an important construct to measure in assessing the restorative potential of nature narratives. Participants (n = 54) were randomly assigned to listen to either narratives describing nature or urban settings. Participants completed several state mood measures before and after listening to the interventions. During the interventions, electroencephalography (EEG) was recorded, and at the end of the study, participants rated the perceived restorativeness of the narratives. It was hypothesised that participants in the nature condition would show evidence of restoration in terms of EEG and behavioural ratings of mood and perceived restoration, with mindfulness interacting with narrative condition (resulting in more pronounced restorative effects in the nature condition). This hypothesis was partially supported by the EEG recordings, specifically in the theta band. However, the behavioural measures of restoration showed nonspecific effects of mindfulness, with higher mindfulness associated with greater markers of restoration regardless of narrative condition. Factors that may have altered the result are discussed. Mindfulness was found to be a main contributor on whether there were restorative effects observed.
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Notes
Thesis Advisor(s): Dr. Stephen Van Hedger