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Health Benefits of Nature

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Encyclopedia of Evolutionary Psychological Science

Synonyms

Nature effects on well-being; Positive impacts of exposure to nature on human health

Definition

Physical and mental well-being may be fostered by being in nature, viewing natural scenes, and bringing natural elements (e.g., indoor plants and natural light) into built environment.

Introduction

The work of several scholars in the area of human-environment relations confirms the notion that contact with nature may be beneficial for human health and well-being. This idea is very intuitive and is reflected in the fact that most people, regardless of their nationality or culture, prefer natural environments over urban environments (Parsons 1991) and that the majority of places that people consider favorite or restorative are natural places (Kaplan and Kaplan 1989). While the relation between contact with nature and human well-being may seem quite obvious and self-explanatory, there are many nuances to be taken into consideration.

In most studies, the effects of natural environments...

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References

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Correspondence to Željka Pačalat .

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© 2016 Springer International Publishing Switzerland

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Pačalat, Ž. (2016). Health Benefits of Nature. In: Weekes-Shackelford, V., Shackelford, T., Weekes-Shackelford, V. (eds) Encyclopedia of Evolutionary Psychological Science. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-16999-6_2929-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-16999-6_2929-1

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  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-16999-6

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