Nature exposure reduces self-reported acute pain: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Aktivität: VorträgeVortragScience to Science

Beschreibung

A substantial body of research shows that interacting with nature contributes positively to physical and mental health. Evidence suggests that nature exposure is even associated with reduced levels of self-reported pain. However, the magnitude and robustness of this effect remain unclear. We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to quantitatively investigate the impact of different forms of nature exposure on self-reported acute pain (including rating scales and pain threshold). The meta-analysis so far includes 37 studies from 18 countries, covering 51 individual effects and a total sample size of 2648 participants. While updated results will be presented at the conference, the analyses revealed a significant standardized mean difference in acute pain between nature and comparison conditions (SMD = -0.53). This effect was not moderated by publication year, context (clinical vs. laboratory), or design (within- vs. between-designs). However, we found the type of control used to act as a moderator: studies comparing nature exposure to other forms of distraction showed a smaller effect (SMD = -0.27) than studies that used no other forms of distraction (SMD = -0.59). The analyses also showed a high level of between-study heterogeneity, potentially attributable to variations in the types of acute pain and nature exposure used. Our results suggest that nature exposure has a consistent but small to medium effect on self-reported pain (corresponding to a reduction of one point on a scale ranging from zero to ten). We will discuss practical implications and how methodological variations among studies influence the outcome.
Zeitraum16 Sept. 2024
Ereignistitel53. Kongress der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Psychologie (DGPs)
VeranstaltungstypKonferenz
OrtWien, ÖsterreichAuf Karte anzeigen
BekanntheitsgradInternational

Schlagwörter

  • nature benefits
  • pain
  • meta-analysis
  • restorative environments