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Box 7.4: Health Benefits of Experiencing Wilderness – Case Study in the
Black Forest National Park
Kerstin Ensinger (*)
Black Forest National Park, Seebach, Germany
e-mail: kerstin.ensinger@nlp.bwl.de
Eike von Lindern
Dialog N – Research and Communication for People, Environment and
Nature, Zurich, Switzerland
e-mail: eike.von.lindern@dialog-n.ch
The Black Forest National Park is surrounded by densely populated areas,
like the city of Stuttgart. It serves as both a refuge for wildlife and endangered
species, and as a recreational area for the local population and tourists. Thus,
its management objectives comprise both nature conservation and increasing
human health and well-being via recreation opportunities. In 2016, the Black
Forest National Park conducted an experimental study to explore the association between experiencing different types of natural landscapes and human
health. Participants (n = 111) followed a pre-defined path that led through four
landscape types: a cultivated spruce forest; a small trail with blueberry vegetation; open heathland; and a pristine forest (referred to as ‘wilderness’). At
designated stops within each of the different landscapes, participants reported
their experience of the four restorative qualities of ART, and the SRT outcomes of positive and negative arousal (for details see Ensinger and von
Lindern 2018).
While perceiving the landscape associated with ‘wilderness’, the participants experienced significantly more fascination compared to the other three
landscapes. Ratings for being away and compatibility were stronger compared to the ‘cultivated forest of spruce’, but not significantly different from
the ‘small trail with blueberry vegetation’ nor the ‘open heathland’. Most
striking, coherence was rated significantly lower in the wilderness setting
compared to the other three landscapes (see Fig. 7.3).
Positive arousal was significantly higher in wilderness compared to the
other three landscapes, but no differences emerged for negative arousal.
Among other results reported elsewhere (Ensinger and von Lindern 2018),
the overall findings suggest that experiencing wilderness in National Parks
and designated protected areas makes a unique and positive contribution to
stronger restorative outcomes. Thus, the results can inform management plans
that aim at complementing nature conservation with human health
promotion.
7 Theoretical Foundations of Biodiversity and Mental Well-being Relationships
Box 7.4: Health Benefits of Experiencing Wilderness – Case Study in the
Black Forest National Park
Kerstin Ensinger (*)
Black Forest National Park, Seebach, Germany
e-mail: kerstin.ensinger@nlp.bwl.de
Eike von Lindern
Dialog N – Research and Communication for People, Environment and
Nature, Zurich, Switzerland
e-mail: eike.von.lindern@dialog-n.ch
The Black Forest National Park is surrounded by densely populated areas,
like the city of Stuttgart. It serves as both a refuge for wildlife and endangered
species, and as a recreational area for the local population and tourists. Thus,
its management objectives comprise both nature conservation and increasing
human health and well-being via recreation opportunities. In 2016, the Black
Forest National Park conducted an experimental study to explore the association between experiencing different types of natural landscapes and human
health. Participants (n = 111) followed a pre-defined path that led through four
landscape types: a cultivated spruce forest; a small trail with blueberry vegetation; open heathland; and a pristine forest (referred to as ‘wilderness’). At
designated stops within each of the different landscapes, participants reported
their experience of the four restorative qualities of ART, and the SRT outcomes of positive and negative arousal (for details see Ensinger and von
Lindern 2018).
While perceiving the landscape associated with ‘wilderness’, the participants experienced significantly more fascination compared to the other three
landscapes. Ratings for being away and compatibility were stronger compared to the ‘cultivated forest of spruce’, but not significantly different from
the ‘small trail with blueberry vegetation’ nor the ‘open heathland’. Most
striking, coherence was rated significantly lower in the wilderness setting
compared to the other three landscapes (see Fig. 7.3).
Positive arousal was significantly higher in wilderness compared to the
other three landscapes, but no differences emerged for negative arousal.
Among other results reported elsewhere (Ensinger and von Lindern 2018),
the overall findings suggest that experiencing wilderness in National Parks
and designated protected areas makes a unique and positive contribution to
stronger restorative outcomes. Thus, the results can inform management plans
that aim at complementing nature conservation with human health
promotion.
7 Theoretical Foundations of Biodiversity and Mental Well-being Relationships