Effects of Deciduous Forests on Adolescent Emotional Health in Urban Areas: An Example from the Autumn Ginkgo Forest in Chengdu

Abstract

Many studies have shown that urban green spaces can promote emotional health. Deciduous forest is an important landscape and ecological resource of the city. However, the emotional impact of different behavior patterns in this kind of natural space with obvious seasonal changes are rarely discussed. This study explores the emotional feedback of two typical behavior patterns within an urban landscape forest in autumn: sitting and walking. We recruited 80 volunteers and divided them into a sitting viewing group (group S) and a walking viewing group (group W). On the premise of gender balance, they were randomly assigned to a natural path under a Ginkgo biloba forest in autumn for 15 min of viewing. Physiological and psychological indicators were used for monitoring. Blood pressure, heart rate and electroencephalography (EEG) were used for physiological indicators, and a POMS questionnaire was used for psychological indicators. A paired t-test and one-way ANOVA were used to analyze the physiological parameters of the two experimental groups, and a paired Wilcoxon signed-rank sum test was used to analyze the differences in psychological indexes between the two behavior groups. The results showed that the diastolic blood pressure and pulse of the sitting group decreased significantly under the seasonal deciduous forest, and the walking group attained higher “Engagement”, “Excitement”, and “Relaxation”. In the absolute α and β waves, there were significant differences in the parietal P8 channels between the sitting and walking groups, and significant differences in the RAB indicators of the AF3, F7, P7, FC5, FC6, F3 and T7 channels. The two behavior patterns can effectively reduce negative mood, and the “Vigor” mood in the walking group was significantly increased, which was significantly better than that of the sitting group in reducing negative mood. These results enrich research on the influence on emotional health in the field of seasonal green-space restoration. The differences of different behavior patterns can provide guidance for planning urban landscape forest construction and activity facilities.