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Exposure to Green, Blue and Historic Environments and Mental Well-Being: A Comparison between Virtual Reality Head-Mounted Display and Flat Screen Exposure

Author

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  • Rebecca Reece

    (Centre for Public Health and Wellbeing, University of the West of England, Bristol BS16 1QY, UK)

  • Anna Bornioli

    (Erasmus Centre for Urban, Port and Transport Economics, Erasmus University Rotterdam, Burgemeester Oudlaan 50, 3062 PA Rotterdam, The Netherlands)

  • Isabelle Bray

    (Centre for Public Health and Wellbeing, University of the West of England, Bristol BS16 1QY, UK)

  • Nigel Newbutt

    (College of Education, School of Teaching and Learning, Institute of Advanced Learning Technologies, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA)

  • David Satenstein

    (Department of Education and Childhood, Faculty of Arts, Creative Industries and Education, University of the West of England, Bristol BS16 1QY, UK)

  • Chris Alford

    (Psychological Sciences Research Group, University of the West of England, Bristol BS16 1QY, UK)

Abstract

Improving the mental health of urban residents is a global public health priority. This study builds on existing work that demonstrates the ability of virtual exposure to restorative environments to improve population mental health. It compares the restorative effects of green, blue and historic environments delivered by both flat screen and immersive virtual reality technology, and triangulates data from psychological, physiological and qualitative sources. Results from the subjective measure analyses showed that exposures to all the experimental videos were associated with self-reported reduced anxiety and improved mood, although the historic environment was associated with a smaller reduction of anxiety ( p < 0.01). These results were supported by the qualitative accounts. For two of the electroencephalography (EEG) frequency bands, higher levels of activity were observed for historic environments. In relation to the mode of delivery, the subjective measures did not suggest any effect, while for the EEG analyses there was evidence of a significant effect of technology across three out of four frequency bands. In conclusion, this study adds to the evidence that the benefits of restorative environments can be delivered through virtual exposure and suggests that virtual reality may provide greater levels of immersion than flat screen viewing.

Suggested Citation

  • Rebecca Reece & Anna Bornioli & Isabelle Bray & Nigel Newbutt & David Satenstein & Chris Alford, 2022. "Exposure to Green, Blue and Historic Environments and Mental Well-Being: A Comparison between Virtual Reality Head-Mounted Display and Flat Screen Exposure," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(15), pages 1-21, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:19:y:2022:i:15:p:9457-:d:878227
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Tian Gao & Tian Zhang & Ling Zhu & Yanan Gao & Ling Qiu, 2019. "Exploring Psychophysiological Restoration and Individual Preference in the Different Environments Based on Virtual Reality," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(17), pages 1-14, August.
    2. Fan Yang & Zhi Yi Bao & Zhu Jun Zhu, 2011. "An Assessment of Psychological Noise Reduction by Landscape Plants," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 8(4), pages 1-17, April.
    3. Tsai-Chiao Wang & Cindy Hui-Ping Sit & Ta-Wei Tang & Chia-Liang Tsai, 2020. "Psychological and Physiological Responses in Patients with Generalized Anxiety Disorder: The Use of Acute Exercise and Virtual Reality Environment," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(13), pages 1-15, July.
    4. Sus Sola Corazon & Ulrik Sidenius & Dorthe Varning Poulsen & Marie Christoffersen Gramkow & Ulrika Karlsson Stigsdotter, 2019. "Psycho-Physiological Stress Recovery in Outdoor Nature-Based Interventions: A Systematic Review of the Past Eight Years of Research," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(10), pages 1-21, May.
    5. Sara Tilley & Chris Neale & Agnès Patuano & Steve Cinderby, 2017. "Older People’s Experiences of Mobility and Mood in an Urban Environment: A Mixed Methods Approach Using Electroencephalography (EEG) and Interviews," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 14(2), pages 1-20, February.
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    Cited by:

    1. Rebecca Reece & Anna Bornioli & Isabelle Bray & Chris Alford, 2022. "Exposure to Green and Historic Urban Environments and Mental Well-Being: Results from EEG and Psychometric Outcome Measures," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(20), pages 1-14, October.

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