A Review of The Science of Biophilia, Biophilic Design and Human Health Impacts
Advertisement
Introduction
E. O. Wilson first used the term ‘biophilia’ to describe the innate connection of human beings to other life (Wilson, 1984). In that same year, Roger Ulrich published an article that explored differing recovery times for gallbladder surgery patients. The patients were matched demographically and even by the paint color of their rooms, with the remaining variable being the view from their beds. Half of the patients had a view of a brick wall, the other half had a view of some trees and shrubs. The patients with the view to the brick wall took an average of 8.7 days to recover, while the patients with the view to the trees took an average of 7.9 days. This was the first study of the impact of views to nature on the healing process (Ulrich, 1984). It helped launch the healing gardens movement in hospitals around the world.
In subsequent studies with cardiac patients in Sweden, Ulrich and his team showed patients either images of nature or blank sheets of paper before or after heart surgery. They found that patients who viewed the nature images prior to or post-surgery had lower blood pressure, lower heart rate and improved recovery times (Ulrich & Lunden, 1990).
Similarly, Peter Kahn and colleagues (Friedman et al., 2008) found that installing a video screen showing images of nature would lower blood pressure, lower heart rate and have positive psychological benefits for workers in a windowless space. This led Kahn to ask if seeing simulated nature was equivalent to real nature. In a study at the University of Washington, (Kahn et al., 2008) participants were given a stressor, and then during the recovery task had one of three views: a wall of plain curtains; the same wall with a portion of the curtains open to reveal a view out a window to a fountain, flowers and trees; or portions of the curtains open to reveal a high-definition flat screen television of the same dimensions and aspect ratio as the window showing in real time the view out of the window. While the view of just the curtains was not particularly helpful to the recovery process, the view out the window and the view of the flat screen elicited similar positive psychological responses. The view shown on the flat screen television lowered blood pressure and heart rate, but not as much as the view out of the real window.
A more recent study that compared the responses to sitting in a windowless classroom vs a seat surrounded by plants and a view to water, and which then replicated the same measurements in the same locations, but using VR for the visual stimulus and found similar results. The VR responses were very close to the real nature experiences (Yin et al., 2018).
Viewing scenes of nature clearly has health benefits. Interestingly, even viewing patterns found in nature can be beneficial. Tests indicate that viewing statistical fractals, the kinds of patterns seen in the waves on a beach, flames in a fireplace or the dappled sunlight under trees, also lowers stress (Hägerhäll et al., 2015).
Advertisement
That said, immersion in nature results in significant responses. In Japan and Korea, research has been conducted to gauge the effect of walking or sitting in a forest as opposed to walking or sitting on an urban street. The time in the forest led to lower measurements of blood pressure, heart rate and the cortisol stress hormone. Cortisol levels also reportedly stayed lower for extended periods after the “forest bathing” experience (Tsunetsugu et al., 2013)( Park et al., 2009). Many of the walks occurred in Hinoki cypress plantations, where there are significant phytoncides in the air. There is evidence of changes in the immune system response after these experiences (Qing, 2010).
Additionally, there is now research that some scents might directly influence brain stress response. Mice exposed to the smell of linalool, one of the components of the scent of lavender, had a calming response. The scent seemed to trigger some of the same neurons that are activated by Valium, but without the motor impairment (Harada et al., 2018). Mice have similar neural pathways as humans. So this opens the possibility of another way that nature can help with stress reduction. Another experiment that involved the scent, limonene, found that sleeping in a bed made of stone pine, which has a strong scent of limonene, led to better cardiovascular results than sleeping in a duplicate bed without the scent (Grote et al., 2021).
There are many ways to measure health benefits of biophilic experiences, such as blood pressure, heart rate, hormone balances, skin conductance, brain wave patterns, and heart rate variability. These measurements help to understand stress reduction, cognitive processing and even healing rates.
Many studies look at the benefits of biophilic experiences for individuals, these responses can also have collective benefits. Shifting the alignment of workstations in a utility call center to make the view to the outside more accessible led to a six percent gain in call handling, which was worth 3 times the cost of moving the furniture (Heschong, 2003). Simple changes using carpet, wallpaper and window blinds with patterns based on biomorphic forms and natural based fractals in a sixth grade mathematics class led to improved academic performance. Biometric testing tracking heart rate variability indicated enhanced stress recovery characteristics which then improved over the course of the study (Determan et al., 2019). In Toronto, the increased presence for street trees in residential areas, independent of demographics, was determined to support health characteristics of a population 10 years younger (Kardan et al., 2015).
Conclusion
While these cumulative benefits are important, there has been a concern that the biophilic responses would diminish with repeated experiences. There is however evidence to the contrary. Irving Biederman and Ed Vessel noted that viewing a biophilic image like a Japanese garden maintains roughly the same level of interest over time (Biederman, 2006). Recent biometric evidence in studies of a biophilic classroom (Determan, et al. 2019), and a biophilic immersion experience in a hospital break room (Phillips, 2023), indicate that positive physiological and psychological responses actually improve over repeated exposures. Stephen Kellert had said that repeated and sustained contact with biophilic measures throughout the day was important, we now know that this is truer than any of us could have predicted.
Advertisement
Bill Browning is one of the worlds’ leading experts in the field of biophilic design, and the principal of sustainability consulting firm Terrapin Bright Green. Mr. Browning is also the author of the 14 Patterns of Biophilic Design. Mr. Browning will be presenting at the CitiesAlive Conference in Toronto a deep dive masterclass on this subject on Wednesday Nov. 6, 2024. See CitiesAlive for more details and to register. You can also check out Bill Browning’s Introduction to Biophilic Design lecture on the Living Architecture Academy.
References
Biederman, I.,& Vessel, E, (2006) ‘Perceptual pleasure and the brain,’ American Scientist, 94, pp. 249-255.
Determan, J., Akers, M.A., Albright, T. Browning, B. Martin-Dunlop, C., Archibald, P. & Caruolo, V. (2019). Impact of Biophilic Learning Spaces on Student Success. American Institute of Architects Building Research Information Database, Washington DC.
Friedman, B., Freier, N. G., Kahn, P. H. Jr., Lin, P., & Sodeman,R. ( 2008) ‘Office window of the future? Field-based analyses of a new use of a large display’ International Journal of Human–Computer Studies, 66, pp. 452–465.
Grote, V., Frühwirth, M., Lackner, H. K., Goswami, N., Köstenberger, M., Likar, R., & Moser, M. (2021). Cardiorespiratory interaction and autonomic sleep quality improve during sleep in beds made from Pinus cembra (Stone Pine) solid wood. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health, 18(18), 9749. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18189749
Hägerhäll, C.M.; Laike, T.; Kuller, M.; Marcheschi, E.; Boydston, C.R.; & Taylor, R.S. (2015) Human physiological benefits of viewing nature: EEG responses to exact and statistical fractal patterns. Nonlinear Dyn. Psychol. Life Sci. 2015, 19, 1–12.
Harada, H., Kashiwadani, H., Kanmura, Y. & Kuwaki, t. (2018) ‘Linalool Odor-Induced Anxiolytic Effects in Mice’, Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience, 23 October 2018. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnbeh.2018.00241
Heschong, L. Heschong Mahone Group. (2003). Windows and Offices: A Study of Office Worker Performance and the Indoor Environment. California Energy Commission: Pacific Gas and Electric Company. Fair Oaks, California.
Kahn, P. H., Friedman, B., Gill, B.,Hagman, J., Severson, R. L., Freier, N. G.,Feldman, E. N., Carrere, S & Stolyar, A. (2008) ‘A plasma display window?—The shifting baseline problem in a technologically mediated natural world’, Elsevier Science Ltd., Journal of Environmental Psychology, 28, pp. 192–199.
Kardan, O., Gozdyra, P., Misic, B., Moola, F., Palmer, L.J., Paus, T., & Berman, M.G. (2015). Neighborhood greenspace and health in a large urban center. Nature, scientific report 5; article 11610. doi:10.1038/srep11610
Park B. J., Tsunetsugu, Y., Kasetani, T., Morikawa, T., Kagawa T., & Miyazaki, Y., (2009) ‘Physiological Effects of Forest Recreation in a Young Conifer Forest in Hinokage Town, Japan’, Silva Fennica, 43(2), pp. 291-301.
Philips, M. (2023) personal communications with Mirelle Phillips of Studio Elsewhere regarding time series data sets of user response in Recharge Rooms.
Tsunetsugu, Y, Lee,J. Y., Park, B. J., Tyrväinen, L., Kagawa T., & Miyazaki,Y., (2013). ‘Physiological and psychological effects of viewing urban forest Tsunetsugu landscapes assessed by multiple measurements’, Landscape and Urban Planning, 113, 2013, 90-93.
Li Qing, Effects of forest bathing trips on human immune function, The Japanese Society for Hygiene, published online 25 March 2009.
Ulrich, R. (1984) ‘View Through a Window May Influence Recovery from Surgery’, Science, 27 April 1984, pp. 420-421.
Ulrich, R. & Lunden, O., (1990) ‘Effects of Nature and Abstract Pictures on Patients Recovering from Open-Heart Surgery’, Paper presented at the International Congress of Behavioral Medicine, Uppsala, Sweden, 27-30 June 1990.
Wilson, E. O. (1984) Biophilia Wilson, Edward O., Biophilia, The human bond with other species, Cambridge, Harvard University Press.
Yin, J., Zhu, S., MacNaughton, P., Allen. J. G. & Spengler, J. D. (2018) ‘Physiological and cognitive performance of exposure to biophilic indoor environment’, Building and Environment, Vol. 132, 2018, pp. 255-262.