A conceptual comparison of the influence of nature images, soundscapes, and virtual reality on affect and working memory

Exposure to nature can improve self-reported affect and cognitive outcomes such as attention and working memory. However, existing studies vary in the type of nature used to elicit these changes, ranging from images to virtual reality to real-world nature. This study compared the influence of three types of nature on affect and working memory. In three independent randomised controlled trials, we assessed affect and working memory before and after exposure to nature images (Experiment 1), nature sounds (Experiment 2), and virtual reality nature (Experiment 3), each compared to their urban equivalents. Although none of these nature stimuli improved affect from pre- to post-exposure, declines in positive affect were smaller following exposure to nature images and virtual reality compared to their urban equivalents. Additionally, nature images, sounds, and virtual reality did not meaningfully influence working memory performance. These findings suggest that brief exposures to natural stimuli may be insufficient to improve working memory but that visual representations of nature may buffer against declines in positive affect.