Factors influencing the effectiveness of nature-based interventions (NBIs) aimed at improving mental health and wellbeing: An umbrella review

Topaz Shrestha; Cheryl Voon Yi Chi; Marica Cassarino; Sarah Foley; Zelda Di Blasi

doi:10.1016/j.envint.2024.109217

Factors influencing the effectiveness of nature-based interventions (NBIs) aimed at improving mental health and wellbeing: An umbrella review

Environ Int. 2024 Dec 31:109217. doi: 10.1016/j.envint.2024.109217. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Topaz Shrestha¹, Cheryl Voon Yi Chi², Marica Cassarino³, Sarah Foley⁴, Zelda Di Blasi⁵

Affiliations

¹ School of Applied Psychology, University College Cork, Cork, Ireland. Electronic address: 115441352@umail.ucc.ie.
² School of Applied Psychology, University College Cork, Cork, Ireland. Electronic address: 120109125@umail.ucc.ie.
³ School of Applied Psychology, University College Cork, Cork, Ireland; Environmental Research Institute, University College Cork, Cork, Ireland.
⁴ School of Applied Psychology, University College Cork, Cork, Ireland. Electronic address: Sarah.foley@ucc.ie.
⁵ School of Applied Psychology, University College Cork, Cork, Ireland. Electronic address: Z.DiBlasi@ucc.ie.

PMID: 39753387
DOI: 10.1016/j.envint.2024.109217

Abstract

Several systematic reviews support nature-based interventions (NBIs) as a mechanism of enhancing mental health and wellbeing. However, the available evidence for the effectiveness of these interventions is fragmentary and mixed. The heterogeneity of existing evidence and significant fragmentation of knowledge within the field make it difficult to draw firm conclusions regarding the effectiveness of NBIs. This can only limit the development of interventions to support personal and planetary wellbeing, potentially resulting in ineffective and ill-targeted investment decisions. These concerns have hindered the translation of research evidence into practice and guidelines are urgently required to assist researchers, practitioners and policymakers in developing interventions to promote environmental stewardship and meet the health needs of diverse communities. A higher-order or meta-level synthesis is required to make sense of this evidence. This umbrella review synthesises evidence on the barriers and enablers to nature-based interventions through a summative review of existing published systematic reviews and meta-analyses. A systematic search in PsycINFO, PubMed, Greenfile, Web of Science, Embase, Scopus, Academic Search Complete (EBSCO), Environment Complete (EBSCO), Cochrane Library, CINAHL, Health Policy Reference Centre and Google Scholar was performed. This is a mixed method review, and systematic reviews with both quantitative and qualitative data synthesis were included. 64 systematic reviews were included in the synthesis. The descriptive data, extracted from each study, forms an overview of the characteristics of available evidence on nature-based interventions. A narrative synthesis is used to present the potential factors influencing the outcomes of NBIs. The risk of bias of the systematic reviews was assessed using a 16-item Assessment of Multiple Systematic Reviews 2 (AMSTAR2) checklist. Directions for future research, potential quality needs and recommendations for future research, policymaking, and practice are discusssed.

Keywords: Health promotion; Mental health; Nature-based interventions; Systematic reviews; Umbrella review; Wellbeing.

Publication types

Review