Applying an ecosystem services framework on nature and mental health to recreational blue space visits across 18 countries.

ABSTRACT: The effects of 'nature' on mental health and subjective well-being have yet to be consistently integrated into ecosystem service models and frameworks. To address this gap, we used data on subjective mental well-being from an 18-country survey to test a conceptual model integrating mental health with ecosystem services, initially proposed by Bratman et al. We analysed a range of individual and contextual factors in the context of 14,998 recreational visits to blue spaces, outdoor environments which prominently feature water. Consistent with the conceptual model, subjective mental well-being outcomes were dependent upon on a complex interplay of environmental type and quality, visit characteristics, and individual factors. These results have implications for public health and environmental

SUBMITTER: Garrett JK 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9988977 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature