Mental Health and Green Space
Measuring Mental Health and Green Space
Grahn and Stigsdotter (2010) sampled 953 randomly selected informants from 9 cities in Sweden to respond to a questionnaire. The responses were assessed using factor analysis and regression analyses to measure the impact of green space on mental health. Their study found that environments rich with nature and abundant wildlife help to minimize stress. Their finding is supported by Wolf (n.d.) who shows that by incorporating green spaces into urban areas, communities can improve the mental health of their population.
The study by Fjeld, Veiersted, Sandvik et al. (1998) focused on measuring the neuropsychological symptoms, mucous membrane symptoms, and skin symptoms of participants in an office building before and after foliage plants were introduced into the office. The study measured all of the symptoms were lessened by 23% in total following the introduction of greenery into the office. Their study shows that green space helps to positively impact people’s psychology as well as their physical health.
Green Space in My Area
My city (Cincinnati) ranks 10th among the top 100 largest cities. 14% of the city is considered park land. The city has decreased its percentage of park land by over 1% over the past...
References
Fjeld, T., B. Veiersted, L. Sandvik, G. Riise, and F. Levy. 1998. The Effect of Indoor Foliage Plants on Health and Discomfort Symptoms Among Office Workers. Indoor and Built Environment 7(4), 204.
Grahn, P., and U.K. Stigsdotter. 2010. The Relation Between Perceived Sensory Dimensions of Urban Green Space and Stress Restoration. Landscape and Urban Planning, 94(3-4), 264-275.
Park Score. (2017). Rankings. Retrieved from http://parkscore.tpl.org/historic/2016_ParkScoreRank.pdf
Wolf, K. (n.d.). Mental Health & Function. Retrieved October 21, 2017, from https://depts.washington.edu/hhwb/Thm_Mental.html
Our semester plans gives you unlimited, unrestricted access to our entire library of resources —writing tools, guides, example essays, tutorials, class notes, and more.
Get Started Now