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Measuring Connection to Nature and Exploring Connections to Childhood Activities, Environmental Concern, and Behavior

Brensinger, Jed
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1462809770

Abstract Details

2016, Master of Science, Ohio State University, Environment and Natural Resources.
The human-nature relationship is a topic of increasing interest among the fields of psychology, environment and natural resources, landscape architecture, conservation biology, and parks and recreation studies. These fields, each with their preferred conceptions of the topic and methods of inquiry and investigation have produced a body of literature as diverse as the fields themselves. As a result, there remains confusion over exactly what the human-nature relationship entails, how to quantify it, and the best method for measuring it. Other research has found many of these scales to be highly correlated, an indicator that they are likely measuring the same concept, but the characterization of connection to nature given with each of these scales can differ significantly. Scales can be characterized as cognitive, affective, or experiential, or some combination of the three. Of current interest is developing both a better definition of connection to nature as well as appropriate and valid measurement tools. The studies presented here make comparisons between three measures of connection to nature, the Implicit Association with Nature Test, the Inclusion of Nature in Self, and the Connectedness to Nature Scale. In examining both the demographic variables that impact connection to nature as well as the explanatory power of these measures, this work attempts to situate these measures within the larger fields of research concerned with interactions between humans and nature. This work brings together measures of connection to nature, environmental concern, environmental behaviors, and outdoor recreational experiences to better understand the relationships between each of them. These studies made use of survey data which was collected online from 199 undergraduate university students. Chapter 2 analyzes the data via multiple comparisons between groups based on college major, gender, childhood community, and political ideology. The comparisons are made in reference to three measures of connection to nature and environmental concern and behaviors. Chapter 3 further builds upon the findings of Chapter 2 and other literature in using multiple regression models to explain the variance in levels of connection to nature, environmental concerns, and environmental behaviors. The results of these studies indicate that there are significant differences on measures of connection to nature based on college major and political ideology, but not as a result of gender or childhood community. Measures of connection to nature were found to be significant in explaining levels of environmental concern and environmental behaviors. These results provide a starting place for developing recommendations for future research to explore at a more in-depth level those variables that can explain increased levels of connection to nature and the role that the concept may play in the development of environmental concern and behaviors.
Kristi Lekies (Advisor)
111 p.
Environmental Education; Environmental Studies
human-nature relationship; connection to nature; nature play; childhood outdoor activities; environmental behaviors, environmental concern

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Brensinger, J. (2016). Measuring Connection to Nature and Exploring Connections to Childhood Activities, Environmental Concern, and Behavior [Master's thesis, Ohio State University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1462809770

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Brensinger, Jed. Measuring Connection to Nature and Exploring Connections to Childhood Activities, Environmental Concern, and Behavior. 2016. Ohio State University, Master's thesis. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1462809770.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Brensinger, Jed. "Measuring Connection to Nature and Exploring Connections to Childhood Activities, Environmental Concern, and Behavior." Master's thesis, Ohio State University, 2016. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1462809770

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

osu1462809770
61
© 2016, all rights reserved.
This open access ETD is published by The Ohio State University and OhioLINK.