Faculty of Architecture and Town Planning, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel.
Geography Department, School of Natural Sciences, Bangor University, Bangor, UK.
Conserv Biol. 2024 Aug;38(4):e14283. doi: 10.1111/cobi.14283. Epub 2024 Apr 25.
Human behavior is a key driver of the biodiversity crisis, and addressing it requires changing individual choices and actions. Yet, the same processes that imperil biodiversity (e.g., urbanization) also alienate people from the experience of nature, eroding care for the natural world. Although averting this extinction of experience is increasingly recognized as a major contemporary conservation challenge, understanding of what constitutes nature experience remains elusive and few empirical studies have explored it directly. Most researchers have used nature interactions as a stand-in for experience, even though experience extends beyond interactions. We aimed to determine what constitutes the experience of nature and to propose a holistic, empirically derived framework that incorporates the multiple dimensions and components of the experience of nature. Using a mixed-method approach across 3 countries (the United States, Switzerland, and Israel), we conducted a multistage, conceptual content, cognitive mapping (3CM) exercise with 106 participants. This methodology included developing a prompt to capture participants' perceptions of nature experiences and subsequently refining and organizing their input into distinct components and underlying dimensions through an iterative engagement process. Beyond multisensory interactions with nature, experience of nature consisted of 2 dimensions: the circumstances in which interactions occur and the internal responses that encompass various cognitive, affective, and restorative benefits associated with nature interactions. These 3 dimensions had 33 components that occurred consistently across participants in the 3 countries. Frequently mentioned components included seeing animals, landscapes, or scenery; lack of human influence; weather conditions; relaxing, recharging; feeling good; and awe for nature. Fear and nature experienced at home were the least mentioned components. Together, our results showed that nature experience is a combination of nature interactions, circumstances, and internal responses. The emphasized components underscore the significance of offering access to extensive, less human-influenced natural spaces. This in turn can foster a profound nature experience, cultivating feelings of connectedness and care for nature.
人类行为是生物多样性危机的主要驱动因素，解决这一问题需要改变个人的选择和行为。然而，危及生物多样性的同样过程（如城市化）也使人们与自然体验脱节，侵蚀了人们对自然世界的关心。尽管越来越多的人认识到避免这种自然体验的灭绝是当代保护的主要挑战之一，但对自然体验的构成仍难以理解，很少有实证研究直接探讨它。大多数研究人员将与自然的相互作用作为体验的替代品，尽管体验不仅仅局限于相互作用。我们旨在确定自然体验的构成，并提出一个整体的、经验主义的框架，该框架包含了自然体验的多个维度和组成部分。我们使用混合方法，在 3 个国家（美国、瑞士和以色列）进行了一项有 106 名参与者参与的多阶段、概念内容、认知映射（3CM）研究。该方法包括开发一个提示，以捕捉参与者对自然体验的看法，然后通过迭代参与过程，将他们的输入精炼并组织成不同的组成部分和潜在维度。除了与自然的多感官相互作用外，自然体验还包括两个维度：相互作用发生的环境和包含与自然相互作用相关的各种认知、情感和恢复性益处的内部反应。这 3 个维度有 33 个组成部分，在 3 个国家的参与者中都一致出现。经常提到的组成部分包括看到动物、景观或风景；缺乏人为影响；天气条件；放松、恢复精力；感觉良好；以及对自然的敬畏。在家中感受到的恐惧和自然则是最少被提及的组成部分。总的来说，我们的研究结果表明，自然体验是自然相互作用、环境和内部反应的结合。强调的组成部分突显了提供广泛、较少受人为影响的自然空间的重要性。这反过来又可以培养深刻的自然体验，培养对自然的联系感和关心。
