Affective Outcomes of Group versus Lone Green Exercise Participation.

Area of Science:

• Environmental psychology
• Exercise science
• Human well-being

Background:

• Green exercise research typically focuses on environmental settings, not social dynamics.
• The impact of social context on psychological benefits of green exercise remains underexplored.
• Understanding these factors can optimize nature-based interventions.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate if social setting (alone vs. group) affects psychological outcomes of green exercise.
• To compare changes in mood, self-esteem, and nature connection during solo versus group runs.
• To determine if social interaction modifies the benefits of exercising in a natural environment.

Main Methods:

• A randomized crossover design with 40 participants completing two 3 km runs.
• Participants ran once alone and once in a group (4-5 people) in a naturalistic setting.
• Mood, self-esteem, and nature connection were measured immediately before and after each run.

Main Results:

• Significant positive changes in mood, self-esteem, and nature connection were observed over time for both conditions.
• No statistically significant interaction effect was found between time and social condition (alone vs. group).
• This indicates that the social setting did not differentially impact the psychological benefits.

Conclusions:

• The social setting (exercising alone or in a group) does not appear to influence the immediate psychological benefits of green exercise.
• The positive effects of green exercise on mood, self-esteem, and nature connection are attainable regardless of social context.
• Further research may explore more complex mediating factors or longer-term effects of social dynamics in green exercise.