Exploring the Indoor Plant-People Relationship Through Qualitative Responses

Area of Science:

• Environmental Psychology
• Horticultural Therapy
• Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) - considering the human-nature interaction aspect

Background:

• Humans have historically cultivated relationships with plants, extending to indoor environments.
• While indoor plant benefits are known, subjective people-plant relationships lack in-depth exploration.
• Existing research often overlooks the nuanced, individual connections people form with their indoor plants.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the perceived benefits of owning indoor plants.
• To explore how individuals describe their subjective relationships with indoor plants.
• To identify distinct types of people-plant relationships in indoor settings.

Main Methods:

• Qualitative survey data collected from 115 indoor plant owners in Australia.
• Thematic analysis and qualitative segmentation used to analyze open-ended responses.
• Exploratory qualitative research design to generate new insights.

Main Results:

• Participants identified 11 distinct benefits of indoor plants, with decorative value, air quality, and calming effects being most common.
• An average of 15 indoor plants per owner was reported.
• Four relationship types emerged: highly connected, engaged, limited engagement, and no relationship.

Conclusions:

• People-plant relationships are not uniform; varying levels of connection exist.
• The study provides a qualitative segmentation of indoor plant owners.
• Findings highlight the need for quantitative research to further explore these identified relationship types.