Nature Versus Stress

Jane sits in her cubicle all day at work. Ringing phones and the muttering of several conversations fill her ears. The only things decorating her desk are stacks of files and papers. Hour after hour she stares at her computer screen becoming more and more frustrated. This morning the boss pulled her aside. Her productivity was waning. If her quality of work did not improve within the week he was going to have to put her on report.

Sharon works in the cubicle next to Jane. She hears the same phones and the same drone of office chatter. She has the same amount of files and documents. She, too, has to work endlessly in front of her computer. However, Sharon has an enlarged photograph of the Grand Canyon from her vacation last year taped to the wall behind and to the right of her monitor. After speaking with Jane, the boss goes over to Sharon and expresses how well he feels she is performing.

Can a photograph really make that much of a difference? Many psychologists believe it can. Edward O. Wilson coined the word biophilia in 1984 to describe man's need for contact with nature. He also stated that this was a recent development in human behavior. As a species, humans have spent the majority of their evolution physically and mentally attempting to survive in nature. One could even go so far as to say that natural environments are essential for our survival.

Many studies have been conducted regarding the effects of nature on the human psyche. Steven and Rachel Kaplan's research are possibly the most renown. In 1995 S. Kaplan outlined the Attention Restoration Theory (ART). This theory proposes that the overuse of cerebral functions can cause attention deficit and that activities such as a stroll in a park can help improve cognitive abilities.