Unlocking the Power of Nature: Insights from a 20-Minute Forest Visit on Well-Being
The result's identifiers
Result code in IS VaVaI
<a href="https://www.isvavai.cz/riv?ss=detail&h=RIV%2F62156489%3A43410%2F25%3A43927121" target="_blank" >RIV/62156489:43410/25:43927121 - isvavai.cz</a>
Result on the web
<a href="https://doi.org/10.3390/f16050792" target="_blank" >https://doi.org/10.3390/f16050792</a>
DOI - Digital Object Identifier
<a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/f16050792" target="_blank" >10.3390/f16050792</a>
Alternative languages
Result language
angličtina
Original language name
Unlocking the Power of Nature: Insights from a 20-Minute Forest Visit on Well-Being
Original language description
Recent research underscores the positive effects of nature exposure on health and well-being. Growing evidence also links biodiversity within these environments to enhanced health outcomes, as diverse ecosystems may offer a broader range of multi-sensory stimuli. This experimental field study investigated the effects on psychological and physiological outcomes linked to spending time in a forest compared to an urban environment. Sixty-six healthy participants were randomly assigned to spend 20 min in either a forest environment with alternating tree species richness in the Wienerwald near Vienna, Austria, or an urban environment. Psychological data were collected using validated scales, and saliva cortisol samples were taken before and after the intervention. Findings showed that the forest visit significantly reduced negative emotions, enhanced positive affect, and lowered cortisol levels more effectively than the exposure to the urban environment. However, increased tree diversity within the forest setting did not further amplify these benefits. These results suggest potential mental health and stress reduction benefits of forest exposure in the case of the Wienerwald, supporting the consideration of nature-based interventions in urban public health initiatives. While forest biodiversity appears to have limited additional effects, future research could further investigate its role in nature-based interventions and forest therapy practices.
Czech name
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Czech description
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Classification
Type
J<sub>imp</sub> - Article in a specialist periodical, which is included in the Web of Science database
CEP classification
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OECD FORD branch
40102 - Forestry
Result continuities
Project
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Continuities
O - Projekt operacniho programu
Others
Publication year
2025
Confidentiality
S - Úplné a pravdivé údaje o projektu nepodléhají ochraně podle zvláštních právních předpisů
Data specific for result type
Name of the periodical
Forests
ISSN
1999-4907
e-ISSN
1999-4907
Volume of the periodical
16
Issue of the periodical within the volume
5
Country of publishing house
CH - SWITZERLAND
Number of pages
15
Pages from-to
792
UT code for WoS article
001496083000001
EID of the result in the Scopus database
2-s2.0-105006793939