Research across 12 studies confirms nature’s role in boosting psychological well-being through authenticity and self-esteem, supporting the biophilia hypothesis and highlighting nature’s impact on life satisfaction, meaning, and reduced anxiety and stress. This work was published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology.
In recent years, the scientific community has taken closer interest in how our environment shapes our mental health and well-being. Among the various factors examined, the role of nature—ranging from urban parks to vast wilderness areas—in fostering a sense of authenticity has emerged as a compelling area of study. In this work, Ying Yang and colleagues delve into the relationship between the natural world and our psychological state, particularly how being in nature can make us feel more genuine and true to ourselves.
At the heart of this investigation is the concept of authenticity, a term that humanistic psychologists define as the expression of behaviors that are congruent with one’s true self. It involves being aware of one’s feelings, beliefs, and desires, even when they’re contradictory; processing self-information without bias; acting according to one’s values and needs rather than conforming to external pressures; and engaging in open, honest relationships.
The connection between nature and authenticity is supported by several theories, including the biophilia hypothesis, which suggests humans have an innate affinity for the natural world. This hypothesis posits that our evolutionary background in natural settings has equipped us to find comfort and fulfillment in nature. Theoretical frameworks like attention restoration theory and stress recovery theory provide insights into how nature can replenish our mental resources and alleviate stress, respectively.
The research team, exploring the relationship between nature and psychological well-being, and focusing on authenticity as a key mediator, employed a wide range of methodological approaches.
In the first study, a large online survey was conducted with over 10000 participants who were recruited through a popular Chinese platform similar to Qualtrics. The study aimed to preliminarily test the hypothesis that greater engagement with nature is associated with higher levels of trait authenticity.
Participants’ connection to nature was evaluated using the Connectedness to Nature Scale, while their engagement in nature-related activities was determined through questions about indoor plant cultivation. Their sense of authenticity was measured using the Authenticity Scale. The results revealed a positive association between nature connectedness, engagement in nature-related activities, and authenticity.
Building on these findings, the second study took the investigation to the field in a quasi-experimental design, surveying participants in either natural settings like parks or urban settings such as plazas. This approach allowed for an ecological assessment of how the environment influences authenticity. A total of 270 Chinese participants were included. Again, the Authenticity Scale was used, this time in a version adapted for assessing state authenticity. The findings from this field study replicated the initial results: individuals in natural environments reported higher levels of authenticity compared to those in urban settings.
The third study involved a field experiment with 322 undergraduate students, directly testing the hypothesis that exposure to nature enhances state authenticity and exploring the mechanisms behind this effect, focusing on the satisfaction of basic psychological needs such as autonomy, competence, and relatedness.
Participants were randomly assigned to either a nature or urban condition and asked to observe their surroundings before completing measures of basic psychological needs and authenticity. The results provided experimental evidence for the nature-authenticity link, highlighting the role of autonomy satisfaction as a particularly strong mediator.
Further experimental studies examined factors such as positive affect, self-esteem, and mindfulness as possible mechanisms by which nature affects authenticity. These studies utilized both laboratory settings and digital nature exposures to tease apart the specific pathways through which nature exerts its beneficial psychological effects. Across these varied investigations, self-esteem consistently emerged as the strongest mediator of nature’s influence on authenticity, a finding that was further supported by cross-cultural replication in a Western sample.
A longitudinal study engaged participants in a month-long nature-related activity, such as plant cultivation, comparing their experiences to a control group. This design allowed for the observation of changes in authenticity and psychological well-being over time, providing compelling evidence for the long-term benefits of nature engagement on psychological health and the mediating role of authenticity.
Internal meta-analyses consolidated the findings from these diverse studies, confirming the medium-size effect of nature on authenticity and the consistent mediation by self-esteem, regardless of the nature exposure type.
Combined, these series of 12 studies varied in setting, design, methodology, and cultural context, and consistently supported the idea that nature has a beneficial impact on psychological authenticity. This link between nature and authenticity was found to be mediated through several mechanisms, including satisfaction of basic psychological needs, particularly autonomy, as well as through positive affect, self-esteem, and mindfulness. Notably, self-esteem emerged as the most potent mediator, suggesting that nature enhances a sense of authenticity primarily by boosting self-esteem.
These findings suggest that engagement with nature can lead to greater authenticity and, subsequently, to improved psychological well-being, evidenced by increases in life satisfaction and meaning in life, as well as decreases in depression, anxiety, and stress. This relationship is consistent across diverse demographics, including age, gender, and socioeconomic status.
The authors acknowledge the setting of some studies as a potential confound. While efforts were made to control for this in later experiments, they cannot rule out the possibility that other factors related to the natural or urban environments influenced the results.
The paper, “Nature Nurtures Authenticity: Mechanisms and Consequences”, was authored by Ying Yang, Constantine Sedikides, Yuqi Wang, and Huajian Cai.
