RESEARCH

Participation in Environmental Enhancement and Conservation Activities for Health and Well-Being in Adults: A Review of Quantitative and Qualitative Evidence

This study found that there was a lot of interest (76.3%) in a digital gardening program. People who had gardened before were more interested (84.2%) than those who had never gardened (67%). The most popular way for people to get information was through short videos (60.7%), rather than longer talks or in-person sessions.

Program Types: Therapeutic, Social

Population Groups: Older Adults/Seniors, General Population

Setting or Context: Schools/Educational Settings, Hospitals/Clinics, Community Gardens, Natural Areas/Parks/Forest

Health and Wellness Outcomes: Increased Sense of Belonging (Reduced Isolation), Improved Stress Management, Improved Physical Health, Increased Social Engagement & Skills, Increased Self-Efficacy, Improved Quality of Life

Allied Profession Intersections: Forest/Ecotherapy, Nursing

Type of Activity: Environmental Education, Forest/Natural Area Immersion

Evidence Type: Peer-Reviewed Studies, Meta-Analyses/Systematic Reviews, Qualitative Research, Quantitative Research

Measurement and Evaluation: Metrics for Mental Health, Metrics for Physical Health, Patient-Reported Outcomes

Access: Free

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Summary

This study asked adults in the US who were interested in learning online about what they would want in a digital program focused on gardening to help them eat healthier, be more active, and improve their heart health. The researchers used an online survey through Amazon Mechanical Turk (MTurk) and asked 465 people about their interest in gardening and their preferred ways of learning, like watching videos or attending online lectures. They also asked what topics they would want to learn about in such a program.

The researchers made sure the people taking the survey were actually paying attention and were not computer programs. They compared the answers of people who had gardened before to those who had never gardened to see if their ideas were different. The survey asked about interest in different types of program formats, like weekly expert talks, short videos, or in-person meetings, and also included open-ended questions about what participants would want to see in a gardening program and what new gardeners should know. The researchers then looked at these answers and grouped them based on how they could help people change their behavior.

Link

Husk, K., Lovell, R., Cooper, C. et al. (2016). Participation in environmental enhancement and conservation activities for health and well-being in adults: A review of quantitative and qualitative evidence. Cochrane Database Syst Rev., 2(5), CD010351

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