American Horticultural Therapy Association

(AHTA). This is a professional organization that specializes in, “professional development, education, and expertise of horticultural therapy practitioners.” Notable research by this association is the American Horticultural Therapy Association Definitions and Positions which contains a synopsis of the differences between therapeutic horticulture and horticultural therapy. This document also contains key benefits of therapeutic horticulture along with a list of references for further reading. I have also included their extensive Research Bibliography for further reading and investigation.

Biophilia

Biophilia is, “humans’ inherited psychological tendency to be attracted to other forms of life and the natural environment” (Chen, 2013). When working with families in an outdoor setting, we promote the natural affiliation humans have with nature. The biophilia theory posits that we have an innate tendency to be attracted to nature and natural processes. Initially, this was for survival. Fostering our natural biophilic tendencies has the ability to combat the stressors we face in everyday life. To learn more about biophilia and its real-life applications, please follow this link:

Attention Restoration Theory & Stress Recovery Theory

Attention Restoration Theory (ART) is based on a growing body of research that supports nature-based activities as contributing to improved cognitive functioning. The theory posits that most of the day we spend time in ‘hard focus’ or ‘directed attention’ which causes elevated stress, fatigue, and reduced cognition. Spending time in nature combats this by promoting ‘soft focus’ or ‘soft fascinations.’ This promotes relaxation and allows our minds a chance to rest, thus, restoring our attention capacity and overall cognitive functioning.

Stress Recovery Theory (SRT) focuses on physiological stress recovery in addition to attention restoration. This theory builds off of the biophilia hypothesis in that spending time in nature triggers the parasympathetic nervous system and allows for quicker recovery from stress. Well-known SRT research done by Roger S. Ulrich titled, View through a Window May Influence Recovery from Surgery, found that hospital rooms with views of natural settings resulted in quicker patient recovery time.

Immune Boosting Effects of Nature

Research suggests that spending time in nature can boost our immune system. Plants give off an organic compound called phytoncides that stimulate natural-killer cell activity, which kill tumor- or virus-infected cells (Li, et. al, 2008). Further research has also found that the mycobacterium vaccae, a microorganism found in the natural environment, boosts immune functioning. Lastly, the diversity of microorganisms found in the natural environment may help diversify the microorganisms present in and on our bodies. This diversity naturally builds our immune response (Kuo, 2015).

Additional Research

Additional research will be added, including expansion of the topics listed above. Please check back soon for more information!