Exploring the effect of different typical plant community on human stress reduction: a field experiment

Research has demonstrated the positive effect of natural environment on human restoration and well-being. Time spent in nature can often alleviate both physiological and psychological stress. However, few studies have discussed the environmental health effects of the nature's components and characteristics. Sixty volunteers were recruited and one manufactured environment and five different natural environments were randomly assigned to them, including coniferous forests (pure coniferous forest-PC and mixed coniferous forest-MC), broad-leaved forests (pure broad-leaved forest-PB and mixed broad-leaved forest-MB), and mixed forest (mixed coniferous and broad-leaved forest-MCB). Each volunteer sat in a built or natural environment and looked around the environment for 15 min. Physiological (HR, HRV, BP, pulse rate and salivary cortisol) and psychological indicators (POMS and STAI) were used to evaluate the changes in their stress level. Results indicated a strong difference in HR, HRV, POMS and STAI between the built and natural environment, which showed that natural environment can lower the stress level. MC had the best effect on relieving physiological stress, whereas MCB is most successful in improving emotional state and reducing anxiety. Broad-leaved forest and mixed forest significantly affected the DBP and vigor level of the subjects, respectively. While coniferous forest did significantly increase the concentration of salivary cortisol in subjects. The study confirmed that compared to the built environment, the natural environment can relieve the human body's physical and psychological stress and negative emotions, while significantly increasing vitality. And different plant communities also have different effects on the physiological and psychological indicators of the subjects. These results will provide scientific basis for the construction and improvement of urban green space environment.