Our physical environment influences our cravings for alcohol, cigarettes and harmful foods. Researchers have determined that, “Green views were inversely associated with craving strength and frequency…Access to a garden/allotment was inversely associated with craving…Access to gardens/allotments and residential views incorporating more than 25% greenspace were both associated with reductions in the strength and frequency of cravings.”
This study has important public health implications, and the links between exposure to nature and reduced cravings can reasonably be assumed to be present in other space types, such as workplaces.
Leanne Martin, Sabine Pahl, Mathew White, and Jon May. “Natural Environments and Craving: The Mediating Role of Negative Affect.” Health and Place, in press, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.healthplace.2019.102160
Sally Augustin, PhD, a cognitive scientist, is the editor of Research Design Connections (www.researchdesignconnections.com), a monthly subscription newsletter and free daily blog, where recent and classic research in the social, design, and physical sciences that can inform designers’ work are presented in straightforward language. Readers learn about the latest research findings immediately, before they’re available elsewhere. Sally, who is a Fellow of the American Psychological Association, is also the author of Place Advantage: Applied Psychology for Interior Architecture (Wiley, 2009) and, with Cindy Coleman, The Designer’s Guide to Doing Research: Applying Knowledge to Inform Design (Wiley, 2012). She is a principal at Design With Science (www.designwithscience.com) and can be reached at sallyaugustin@designwithscience.com.