Exposure to nature counteracts aggression after depletion

The negative effects of ego-depletion in junior high school students on displaced aggressive behavior and the counteraction of the natural environment

The current study investigated the effects of ego-depletion in junior high school students on displaced aggressive behavior and the counteraction of the nature. Study 1 investigated the effects of ego-depletion on displaced aggressive behavior in junior high school students using a within-subject design, comparing the differences in displaced aggressive behavior between the induced ego-depletion condition and the non-induced ego-depletion condition. Results showed that junior high school students exhibited significantly higher levels of displaced aggressive behavior under the induced ego-depletion condition compared to the non-induced ego-depletion condition. Study 2 examined the role of the nature in the process of ego-depletion influencing displaced aggressive behavior. A 2 (ego-depletion: induced ego-depletion vs. non-induced ego-depletion) × 2 (picture type: blank picture vs. natural picture) mixed design was used. A picture-viewing task was inserted between the ego-depletion task and the displaced aggressive behavior task to compare the differences in displaced aggressive behavior between the group that viewed blank pictures and the group that viewed natural pictures. The results showed that under the induced ego-depletion condition, there was no significant difference in displaced aggressive behavior between viewing natural pictures and viewing blank pictures. However, after viewing blank pictures, displaced aggressive behavior under induced ego-depletion condition was significantly higher than under non-induced ego-depletion condition; after viewing natural pictures, there was no significant difference in displaced aggressive behavior between induced ego-depletion condition and non-induced ego-depletion condition. These results suggest that ego-depletion can increase displaced aggressive behavior in junior high school students, but this phenomenon is not observed after exposure to nature. The current study provides empirical evidence for investigating the effects of ego-depletion on displaced aggressive behavior.

The role of culture on the link between worldviews on nature and psychological health during the COVID-19 pandemic

Worldviews about human's relationship with the natural world play an important role in psychological health. However, very little is currently known regarding the way worldviews about nature are linked with psychological health during a severe natural disaster and how this link may differ according to cultural context. In this study, we measured individual differences in worldviews about nature and psychological health during the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic within two different cultural contexts (Japan and United States). We found that across Japanese and American cultural contexts, holding a harmony-with-nature worldview was positively associated with improved psychological health during the COVID-19 pandemic. We also found that culture moderated the link between mastery-over-nature worldviews and negative affect. Americans showed a stronger link between mastery-over-nature worldviews and negative affect than Japanese. These findings support the biophilia hypothesis and contribute to theories differentiating Japanese and American cultural contexts based on naïve dialecticism and susceptibility to cognitive dissonance.

Neighbourhood greenspace and smoking prevalence: Results from a nationally representative survey in England

OBJECTIVE

The current study investigated whether people are less likely to be smokers when they live in greener neighbourhoods, and whether such an association is attributable to lower rates of ever-smoking and/or higher rates of smoking cessation.

METHOD

Using a representative sample of the adult population of England (N = 8,059), we investigated the relationships between neighbourhood greenspace and three inter-related smoking outcomes (current smoking, ever-smoking and smoking cessation).

RESULTS

After controlling for a range of individual and area-level covariates, including socioeconomic status, income and education, living in the highest greenspace quartile was associated with a 20% lower prevalence of current smoking, compared to living in the lowest greenspace quartile (PR = 0.80, CI = 0.67, 0.96, p < .017). Neighbourhood greenspace was not significantly associated with ever-smoking. However, amongst ever-smokers, residing in the two highest quartiles of neighbourhood greenspace quartiles (vs. 1st quartile) was associated with a 10% and 12% higher prevalence of smoking cessation (PR = 1.10, CI = 1.02, 1.18, p = .012; PR = 1.12, CI = 1.02, 1.22, p = .016, respectively). This suggests that the association between greenspace and current smoking is due to a higher likelihood of smoking cessation, rather than lower rates of ever- smoking. The associations between greenspace, current smoking and smoking cessation were similar in magnitude to those of having high (vs. low) household income and were largely unmoderated by socioeconomic measures.

IMPLICATIONS

Our findings advocate the need to protect and invest in local greenspaces, to maximise the public health benefits they may afford. Improving access to greenspace may constitute an overlooked public health strategy for reducing smoking prevalence.

Psychophysiological Effects of Different Methods of Inducing Restoration Needs

The purpose of this study was to examine the psychophysiological effects of different restoration need-inducing methods and the changes in these effects overtime. This study adopted a randomized controlled trial to assign participants (experiment 1: n = 120, experiment 2: n = 90) to four experimental treatments: control, imagined fatigue, the Stroop task and the binary classification task, and the Markus and Peters arithmetic test. We used self-report scales (The Pleasure-Arousal-Dominance emotion scale, The Well-being Measures, and The Restoration Scale) and an attention test (backward digit span) as pre- and posttests, and a physiological measuring device to continually assess participants' bodily mobilizations. The results showed that the Stroop task and the binary classification task as well as the Markus and Peters arithmetic test more significantly increased the arousal of subjective perception and decreased restoration than the control and imagined fatigue, and the physiological influences of the methods varied overtime with no definitive trend.

A Scoping Review Mapping Research on Green Space and Associated Mental Health Benefits

BACKGROUND

There is a growing interest in research investigating the association between green space (GS) and mental health and wellbeing (HWB), in order to understand the underlying mechanisms. Accordingly, there is a need to map the literature and create an overview of the research.

METHODS

A scoping review approach was used to map literature on GS, including context and co-exposures (the GS exposome), and their associations with mental HWB. The review considers mental HWB definitions and measurements and how GS is characterized. Furthermore, the review aims to identify knowledge gaps and make recommendations for future research.

RESULTS

We identified a great diversity in study designs, definitions, outcome measures, consideration of the totality of the GS exposome, and reporting of results. Around 70% of the 263 reviewed studies reported a positive association between some aspect of GS and HWB. However, there is a limited amount of research using randomized controlled crossover trails (RCTs) and mixed methods and an abundance of qualitative subjective research.

CONCLUSIONS

The discords between study designs, definitions, and the reporting of results makes it difficult to aggregate the evidence and identify any potential causal mechanisms. We propose key points to consider when defining and quantifying GS and make recommendations for reporting on research investigating GS and mental HWB. This review highlights a need for large well-designed RCTs that reliably measure the GS exposome in relation to mental HWB.

The Relationship Between Self-Efficacy and Aggressive Behavior in Boxers: The Mediating Role of Self-Control

Aggressive behavior has been one of the core issues in sports psychology, whereas boxers' aggressive behavior has received limited attention. Although some literature reported that self-efficacy is related to aggressive behavior, the mechanism whereby self-efficacy affects aggressive behavior remains unclear. The present study investigated the relationship between self-efficacy and aggressive behavior, as well as the effect of self-control as a mediating factor. This study uses the Self-efficacy Scale for Athletes, the Self-control Questionnaire for Athletes, and the Buss-Perry Aggression Questionnaire. This relationship is explored through self-reported measures from N = 414 Chinese professional boxers, n = 243 were male and n = 171 were female, the average age was M = 17.72 years (SD = 3.147), the participants, the average number of years of exercise was M = 3.89 years (SD = 2.734); Results showed that male boxers reported greater aggression than female boxers; It was found that the self-efficacy and self-control improved as age of the participants increased; The higher the level of competition, the higher levels of self-efficacy and self-control; Self-efficacy was negatively related with aggressive behavior and positively correlated with self-control. Self-control was also negatively correlated with aggressive behavior among boxers. Self-control had a full mediating effect on the relationship between self-efficacy and aggressive behavior.