Green Care: A Conceptual Framework - Frisk i naturen

positively responded to that environment, hence rapid recovery in the
natural (restorative) setting from the effects of stressful stimuli would be an
evolutionary advantage.
In a much cited study, Ulrich showed that patients recovering from
cholecystectomy (gall bladder surgery) fared better if they had a view of
trees from their hospital bed than if that view was of a brick wall (Ulrich,
1984). Subsequently (Ulrich et al, 1991) he observed that subjects’ heart
rate and EMG (electromyogram) recovered more rapidly from the effects
of watching a stressful film with scenes of simulated injury if they viewed
a video of natural scenes rather than scenes of traffic or a pedestrian mall.
This was consistent with earlier work which suggested that the initial
response to a natural environment is the result of rapid changes in the
physiological and psychological state (Ulrich, 1983).
Kaplan (1995) proposed a model which integrated attention fatigue
within the stress mechanism. In this model attention fatigue can lead to
the stress response; it can occur as a result of the stress response or it can
occur alongside the stress response as a result of an aversive stimulus. It
is likely, therefore, that a number of complex psychological mechanisms
are involved during the process of stress and attention fatigue and are at
work within ‘restorative environments’ and experiences. These mechanisms
may explain why horticulture and gardening, for example, are popular in
rehabilitation even though other activities may well provide opportunities
for the development of manual dexterity, group and social skills. Thus the
preference for a natural environment and interaction with it in the form
of agriculture, horticulture, gardening or other forms of green care may
stem from evolutionary origins in addition to culturally-modified learned
behaviour.
References
Kaplan, S. (1995) ‘The restorative benefits of nature: toward an integrative framework’. Journal of
Environmental Psychology, 15, 169-182.
Ulrich, R. S. (1983) ‘Aesthetic and affective response to natural environment’. In I. Altman and J.F.
Wohlwill (eds.) Human Behaviour and Environment: Behaviour and the Natural Environment, 85-125,
New York: Plenum Press.
Ulrich, R. S (1984) ‘View through a window may influence recovery from surgery’. Science, 224, 420-
421.
Ulrich, R. S., Simons, R. F., Losito, B. D., Fiorito, E., Miles, M. A. and Zelson, M. (1991) ‘Stress
recovery during exposure to natural and urban environments’. Journal of Environmental Psychology,
11, 201-230.
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