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The impact of blue, green, and urban spaces on acute stress levels in an adult population : a psychophysiological perspective

Thesis (PhD (Psychology))--University of Pretoria, 2022.

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Other Authors: Coetzee, Nicoleen
Format: Thesis
Language:English
Published: University of Pretoria 2023
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access_status_str Open Access
author2 Coetzee, Nicoleen
author_browse Coetzee, Nicoleen
author_facet Coetzee, Nicoleen
collection Thesis
dc_rights_str_mv © 2023 University of Pretoria. All rights reserved. The copyright in this work vests in the University of Pretoria. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the University of Pretoria.
description Thesis (PhD (Psychology))--University of Pretoria, 2022.
format Thesis
id oai:repository.up.ac.za:2263/91398
institution University of Pretoria (South Africa)
language English
last_indexed 2026-06-10T12:39:42.090Z
license_str Other — see source repository
provenance_str_mv Harvested via OAI-PMH from UPSpace — University of Pretoria Institutional Repository
publishDate 2023
publishDateRange 2023
publishDateSort 2023
publisher University of Pretoria
publisherStr University of Pretoria
record_format dspace
source_str UPSpace — University of Pretoria Institutional Repository
spelling oai:repository.up.ac.za:2263/91398 The impact of blue, green, and urban spaces on acute stress levels in an adult population : a psychophysiological perspective Coetzee, Nicoleen ruth.liprini@gmail.com Maree, David J.F. Coetzer, Ruth Mary Psychophysiological acute stress relief in nature Psychophysiological perspective Adult population Acute stress levels Urban spaces UCTD Thesis (PhD (Psychology))--University of Pretoria, 2022. Stress is an ever-increasing feature of daily life. Particularly, repeated exposures to acute stress can result in multiple poor psychophysiological outcomes. These multiple poor outcomes can be operationalised as chronic stress. If the impact of acute stress can be managed, the longer-term impacts of chronic stress can be mitigated. Research has shown that exposure to green and blue spaces are beneficial. However, the existing literature on specifically the psychophysiological stress relieving effects of blue, green, and urban spaces is scarce. This study therefore aimed to assess the extent to which urban, green, and blue spaces impact acute stress, measured psychophysiologically. Furthermore, an integrated psychophysiological model was integrated with evolutionary psychology, the biophilia hypothesis, and stress reduction theory, to form a theoretical point of departure. A four-group, pre-test – post-test control group experimental design was employed, in which 118 participants were exposed to either a blue, green, or urban space video, following exposure to an acute stressor. The control group sat for the same length of time as the treatment groups’ videos. Psychological measurement instruments included the Perceived Stress Scale, Nature Relatedness Scale, Restoration Scale, and four self-developed follow up items. Physiological data that were captured included blood pressure, heart rate, cardio stress index, and electrodermal activity. Overall, the results of two-way mixed ANOVAs, multiple regression, and a single-sample t-test demonstrated that urban areas have the poorest impact on acute stress when compared to green and blue areas. Green and blue spaces did not differ significantly from each other in their ability to impact acute stress, but blue spaces were found to be perceived the most restorative. The implication of these results is that exposure to green and blue spaces promote acute stress recovery and should be considered a viable treatment option for acute stress relief. Psychology PhD (Psychology) Unrestricted 2023-07-13T09:17:15Z 2023-07-13T09:17:15Z 2023-09 2022 Thesis * S2023 http://hdl.handle.net/2263/91398 10.25403/UPresearchdata.23654400 10.25403/UPresearchdata.23655519 en © 2023 University of Pretoria. All rights reserved. The copyright in this work vests in the University of Pretoria. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the University of Pretoria. application/pdf University of Pretoria
spellingShingle Psychophysiological acute stress relief in nature
Psychophysiological perspective
Adult population
Acute stress levels
Urban spaces
UCTD
The impact of blue, green, and urban spaces on acute stress levels in an adult population : a psychophysiological perspective
title The impact of blue, green, and urban spaces on acute stress levels in an adult population : a psychophysiological perspective
title_full The impact of blue, green, and urban spaces on acute stress levels in an adult population : a psychophysiological perspective
title_fullStr The impact of blue, green, and urban spaces on acute stress levels in an adult population : a psychophysiological perspective
title_full_unstemmed The impact of blue, green, and urban spaces on acute stress levels in an adult population : a psychophysiological perspective
title_short The impact of blue, green, and urban spaces on acute stress levels in an adult population : a psychophysiological perspective
title_sort impact of blue green and urban spaces on acute stress levels in an adult population a psychophysiological perspective
topic Psychophysiological acute stress relief in nature
Psychophysiological perspective
Adult population
Acute stress levels
Urban spaces
UCTD
url http://hdl.handle.net/2263/91398