Communication Science, University of Twente, De Zul 10, 7522 NJ Enschede, The Netherlands.
Digital Life Research Group, University of Applied Sciences Amsterdam, Wibautstraat 2, 1091 GM Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2020 Sep 21;17(18):6879. doi: 10.3390/ijerph17186879.
Digital nature can provide a substitute for real nature for those who have limited access to green space, or are confined to their homes, for example during the worldwide COVID-19 lockdown. In a large-scale online survey, respondents ( = 1203) watched videos of digital nature, varying in terms of type of nature (wild versus tended nature) and spaciousness. Results show a significant increase of feelings of connectedness to the community after watching digital nature. Furthermore, tended nature scenes elicited more social aspirations than wild nature scenes. A multiple regression model further shows that living further away from nature was a significant predictor for loneliness scores, while number of nature interactions during a week was not. Results of this study confirm the importance of nature interaction for mental and social wellbeing for the general population and stress the potential of digital nature as a complementary strategy. These findings are of particular relevance to those who lack access to nature due to old age and related mobility constraints or a lockdown.
数字自然可以为那些无法接触到绿色空间，或者因 COVID-19 封锁而被限制在家中的人提供一种替代真实自然的方式。在一项大规模的在线调查中，受访者（=1203 人）观看了不同类型（自然野生与人工自然）和空间大小的数字自然视频。结果表明，观看数字自然后，人们与社区的联系感显著增强。此外，人工自然场景比野生自然场景引发了更多的社交愿望。多元回归模型进一步表明，距离自然越远是孤独感得分的一个显著预测因素，而一周内与自然的互动次数则不是。本研究的结果证实了自然互动对一般人群的精神和社会幸福感的重要性，并强调了数字自然作为一种补充策略的潜力。这些发现对于那些因年老和相关的行动限制或封锁而无法接触自然的人尤其重要。
