The articles in the database below represent a curated selection from our NHA (full) members and Executive Committee. Rather than being a comprehensive database, like what you would find on a mainstream database, this is a limited and curated list of articles gathered by our member. To be included, these peer-reviewed articles and resources must meet specific criteria, ensuring a foundation of quality. Articles included cover a diverse array of study types—experiments, qualitative research, and meta-analyses—all exploring the intricate relationship between nature and well-being. Priority is accorded to works addressing DEIJ matters or fostering consensus on vital topics. If you would like to submit an article to be featured in the database, please email manager@naturehealthalliance.org.
Author:Jennifer D. Roberts |
| Journal of Physical Activity and Health | Volume 20, Issue 11: 994-997
Picture a 2-mile-long, 200-foot-wide parkway bordered by rows of Maple and Elm trees with a bridleway down the middle that connects to a 350-acre park northward and a 56-acre park southward.
Authors:Lewis R. Elliott, Tytti Pasanen, Mathew P. White, Benedict W. Wheeler, James Grellier, Marta Cirach, Gregory N. Bratman, Matilda A. van den Bosch, Anne Roiko, Ann Ojala, Mark Nieuwenhuijsen and Lora E. Fleming |
| Environment International | Volume 178 (August 2023): 108077
The role of neighbourhood nature in promoting good health is increasingly recognised in policy and practice, but consistent evidence for the underlying mechanisms is lacking.
Authors:Carly E. Gray, Peter H. Kahn Jr., Joshua J. Lawler, Pooja Tandon, Gregory N. Bratman, Sara P. Perrins, Yian Lin and Frances Boyens |
| Land | Land: Volume 12, Issue 7 (July 2023): 1303
The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic rendered daily life overwhelmingly difficult for many children. Given the compelling evidence for the physical and mental health benefits of interaction with nature, might it be the case that time spent interacting with nature buffered the negative effects of the pandemic for children?
Authors:Courtney Suess, Jay E. Maddock, Marco Palma, Omar Youssef and Gerard Kyle |
| Tourism Management | Volume 100: 104797
This study applied a Protection Motivation Theory (PMT) framework and Extended Parallel Process Model to explore respondents’ emotional and behavioral responses to video treatments that messaged varied outcomes for coral reef health and pro-environmental behavioral adaption.
Authors:Tytti Pasanen, Mathew P. White, Lewis R. Elliott, Matilda A. van den Bosch, Gregory N. Bratman, Ann Ojala, Kalevi Korpela and Lora E. Fleming |
| Environmental Research | Volume 232: 116324
Rates of living alone, especially in more urbanised areas, are increasing across many industrialised countries, with associated increases in feelings of loneliness and poorer mental health.
Authors:Devon Jecmen and Sara LoTemplio |
| Ecopsychology | Ahead of Print
The positive effects of natural environments on mental health have been observed and studied for decades. Specifically, psychology research from across the world has suggested that nature can reduce depression symptomology, although there is uncertainty about the mechanisms behind this relationship.
Authors:Jennifer D. Roberts, Shadi Omidvar Tehrani and Gregory N. Bratman |
| Global Culture and Sport Series | Sport and Physical Culture in Global Pandemic Times: 213-240
The COVID-19 pandemic has revealed not only the true value of nature and open public spaces, but it reified the presence and persistence of racism in and throughout American institutions.
Authors:Monika M. Derrien, Lee K. Cerveny, Gregory N. Bratman, Chaja Levy, Paulo Frank, Naomi Serio and Dale J. Blahna |
| Society & Natural Resources | Volume 36, Issue 8: 947-969
This article conceptualizes homelessness on public lands within a social-ecological systems framework, exploring dynamics in public natural areas in the Seattle metropolitan area (USA), a system with a compact urban-to-wildland gradient.
Authors:Annalisa Theodorou, Giuseppina Spano, Gregory N. Bratman, Kevin Monneron, Giovanni Sanesi, Giuseppe Carrus, Claudio Imperatori and Angelo Panno |
| Scientific Reports | Scientific Reports: 5028
People who make habitual use of an emotion regulation strategy such as cognitive reappraisal may be more sensitive to the emotion cues coming from a surrounding natural environment and, thus, get more benefits from virtual nature exposure such as enhanced subjective vitality.
Authors:Daniel W. Derbyshire, Olivia Barnett-Naghshineh, Bethany R. Roberts, Riadh Ghemmour, Musarrat Maisha Reza, Morwenna Rogers and Lora E. Fleming |
| Equity in Education & Society | Volume 2, Issue 1
Inequalities within academia – and the research outputs of academic – are a widely acknowledged problem. This results in the reproduction of knowledge gaps within academic praxis.
Authors:Omar Mohamed Makram, Nwabunie Nwana, Juan C. Nicolas, Rakesh Gullapelli, Alan P. Pan, Budhaditya Bose, Tareng Parekh, Sadeer Al-Kindi, Tamer Yahya, Kobina Hagan, Zulqarnain Javed, Kershaw Patel, Garima Sharma, Stephen L. Jones, Miguel Cainzos-Achirica, Jay E. Maddock and Khurram Nasir |
| Current Problems in Cardiology | Volume 48, Issue 6 (June 2023)
This is the first study to investigate the relationship between neighborhood walkability and cardiovascular (CV) risk factors in the United States using a large population-based database.
Urban design that is supportive to walking is becoming an important and proven determinant of health, especially cardiovascular health. This study examined the link between walkability and cardiovascular risk factors by studying close to one million patients in an urban setting.
Authors:Annalisa Theodorou, Luciano Romano, Gregory N. Bratman, Giuseppe A. Carbone, Roberta Rodelli, Gianluca Casagrande and Angelo Panno |
| Journal of Environmental Psychology | Volume 87: 101981
The body of evidence supporting the psychological benefits of exposure to virtual nature, such as increased mood and decreased stress, is rapidly growing.
Authors:Joanne K. Garrett, Mathew P. White, Lewis R. Elliott, James Grellier, Simon Bell, Gregory N. Bratman, Theo Economou, Mireia Gascon, Mare Löhmus, Mark Nieuwenhuijsen, Ann Ojala, Anne Roiko, Matilda A. van den Bosch, Catharine Ward Thompson and Lora E. Fleming |
| Scientific Reports | Scientific Reports: 2209
The effects of ‘nature’ on mental health and subjective well-being have yet to be consistently integrated into ecosystem service models and frameworks.
Authors:Emily E. Scott, Kaedyn W. Crabtree, Amy S. McDonnell, Sara LoTemplio, Glen D. McNay and David L. Strayer |
| Frontiers in Psychology | Volume 14: 1039334
Research suggests that spending time in natural environments is associated with cognitive and affective benefits, while increased use of technology and time spent in urban environments are associated with depletion of cognitive resources and an increasing prevalence of mental illness.
Authors:Matthew H.E.M. Browning, Seunguk Shin, Gabrielle Drong, Olivia McAnirlin, Ryan J. Gagnon, Shyam Ranganathan, Kailan Sindelar, David Hoptman, Gregory N. Bratman, Shuai Yuan, Vishnunarayan Girishan Prabhu and Wendy Heller |
| Scientific Reports | Scientific Reports: 1239
Exposure to natural environments offers an array of mental health benefits. Virtual reality provides simulated experiences of being in nature when outdoor access is limited. Previous studies on virtual nature have focused mainly on single "doses" of virtual nature. The effects of repeated exposure remain poorly understood.
Authors:Jill S. Litt, Katherine Alaimo, Kylie K Harrall, Richard F. Hamman, James R Hébert, Thomas G Hurley, Jenn A Leiferman, Kaigang Li, Angel Villalobos, Eva Coringrato, Jimikaye Beck Courtney, Maya Payton and Deborah H Glueck |
| The Lancet Planetary Health | Volume 7, Number 1, January 2023: e23-e32
Unhealthy diet, physical inactivity, and social disconnection are important modifiable risk factors for non-communicable and other chronic diseases, which might be alleviated through nature-based community interventions. We tested whether a community gardening intervention could reduce these common health risks in an adult population that is diverse in terms of age, ethnicity, and socioeconomic status.
The purpose of this study was to examine the health benefits of the Bayou Greenway trail system in Houston by tracking patterns and changes in hospital visits.
Authors:Bridget Simon-Friedt, Alan P. Pan, Tariq Nisar, Sadeer Al-Kindi, Amanda Nunley, Lisa Graiff, Bita Kash, Jay E. Maddock and Khurram Nasir |
| Local Environment: The International Journal of Justice and Sustainability | Volume 28, Issue 3 (2023): 365-378
Exposure to urban greenspaces has been linked to improved health outcomes for prevalent conditions. Studies have observed traditional block greenspaces, whereas linear trail systems could maximise health impacts by reaching greater population percentages.
Authors:Valeria Vitale, Leanne Martin, Mathew P. White, Lewis R. Elliott, Kayleigh J. Wyles, Matthew H.E.M. Browning, Sabine Pahl, Patricia Stehl, Gregory N. Bratman, Simon Bell, Mireia Gascon, James Grellier, Maria L. Lima, Mare Löhmus, Mark Nieuwenhuijsen, Ann Ojala, Jane Taylor, Matilda A. van den Bosch, Netta Weinstein and Lora E. Fleming |
| Journal of Environmental Psychology | Volume 84: 101876
Contact with natural environments is associated with good health and well-being.
