Birch, J., Rishbeth, C. orcid.org/0000-0002-1648-5183 and Payne, S.R. (2020) Nature doesn't judge you – how urban nature supports young people's mental health and wellbeing in a diverse UK city. Health and Place, 62. 102296. ISSN 1353-8292
Abstract
Reviewed research reveals a lack of young people's voices articulating if and how urban nature supports their mental health and wellbeing. This paper presents qualitative research with young multi-ethnic urban residents living in a northern UK city and offers an important counter-narrative to the pervasive notion of childhood nature-deficit disorder. Using interviews and creative arts workshops, we explored the value of urban nature for the mental health and wellbeing of 24 young people aged 17–27 years, 9 of whom had lived experience of mental health difficulties. Trees, water, open spaces and views were frequently experienced nature typologies offering benefits. Deteriorating landscapes, young people's shifting identities and perceived time pressures disrupted support. Young people expressed how urban nature encounters were experienced as accepting and relational, offering a: stronger sense of self; feelings of escape; connection and care with the human and non-human world.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2020 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). |
Keywords: | Mental health; Wellbeing; Young people; Urban nature; Cities; Nature connection |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Sheffield |
Academic Units: | The University of Sheffield > Faculty of Social Sciences (Sheffield) > Department of Landscape Architecture (Sheffield) |
Funding Information: | Funder Grant number NATURAL ENVIRONMENT RESEARCH COUNCIL NE/N013565/1 |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Sheffield |
Date Deposited: | 28 Feb 2020 14:00 |
Last Modified: | 27 May 2020 14:09 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | Elsevier BV |
Refereed: | Yes |
Identification Number: | 10.1016/j.healthplace.2020.102296 |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:157768 |