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January 13, 2015The Journal of Positive Psychology

The effect of contact with natural environments on positive and negative affect: A meta-analysis

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Authors

EMEthan A. McMahanDEDavid Estes

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Overview

Meta-analysis reveals exposure to nature increases positive affect and decreases negative affect in humans, indicating reliable emotional benefits from natural environments.

Key Points

  • To synthesize empirical literature and assess the overall effect size of contact with natural environments on positive and negative affect.
  • Conducted a systematic meta-analysis synthesizing 32 empirical studies comprising N=2,356 participants.
  • Evaluated mean effect sizes of exposure to natural environments compared to control conditions on measures of positive and negative affect.
  • Performed moderator analyses assessing the influence of emotion assessment type, nature exposure type, study location, and sample mean age.
  • Natural environment exposure was associated with a moderate increase in positive affect relative to comparison conditions.
  • Nature contact resulted in a smaller, yet consistent, decrease in negative affect compared to control conditions.
  • Significant heterogeneity was identified for positive affect outcomes, moderated by emotion assessment method, exposure format, study location, and participant age.

Cite This Study

McMahan et al. (2015) studied this question.

synapsesocial.com/papers/69daa3f185037e71b2684535https://doi.org/10.1080/17439760.2014.994224
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Also Consider

Synapse has enriched 5 closely related papers on similar clinical questions. Consider them for comparative context:

  1. 1Does Short-Term Exposure to Nature Enhance Prosocial Outcomes? A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of the Experimental Evidence2026
  2. 2The relationship between emotional well-being and exposure to nature in adults: A systematic review2026
  3. 3How multisensory nature exposure affects well‐being: Visual and auditory influences on affect2025
  4. 4A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of EEG, fMRI, and fNIRS Studies on the Psychological Impact of Nature on Well-Being2026 · 1 citations
  5. 5Personal dispositions explain differences in physical health benefits of nature exposure: the role of restorativeness and affect2024 · 4 citations