Biophilia: Does Visual Contact with Nature Impact on Health and Well-Being?
1
Norwegian Institute of Public Health, PO Box 4404 Nydalen, 0403 Oslo, Norway
2
Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, Box 5003, N-1432 Ås, Norway
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2009, 6(9), 2332-2343; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph6092332
Received: 22 July 2009 / Accepted: 27 August 2009 / Published: 31 August 2009
It is concluded that an environment devoid of Nature may act as a "discord", i.e., have a negative effect. While the term mismatch is used for any difference between present living conditions and the environment of evolutionary adaptation, discords are mismatches with a potentially undesirable impact on health or quality of life. The problem is partly due to the visual absence of plants, and may be ameliorated by adding elements of Nature, e.g., by creating parks, by offering a view through windows, and by potted plants. The conclusion is based on an evaluation of some fifty relevant empirical studies.
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Keywords:
biophilia; discord; quality of life; health; evolutionary psychology; plants; indoor environment
This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License
MDPI and ACS Style
Grinde, B.; Patil, G.G. Biophilia: Does Visual Contact with Nature Impact on Health and Well-Being? Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2009, 6, 2332-2343.
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