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Green space for public mental health: an ethnographic study of ecotherapy in Wales

Ed Lord Orcid Logo

Perspectives in Public Health, Volume: 143, Issue: 3, Pages: 173 - 178

Swansea University Author: Ed Lord Orcid Logo

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DOI (Published version): 10.1177/17579139231170777

Abstract

Aims:In recent years, there has been a growing interest in the ways that human health intersects with exposure to nature. This article reports the findings of a research study investigating the experiences of people in South and West Wales who were engaged in a specific type of nature and health int...

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Published in: Perspectives in Public Health
ISSN: 1757-9139 1757-9147
Published: SAGE Publications 2023
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URI: https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa63231
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spelling 2025-06-06T15:22:53.4053842 v2 63231 2023-04-24 Green space for public mental health: an ethnographic study of ecotherapy in Wales b18ddb213fe27221edc75356c9eef39d 0000-0002-5740-2081 Ed Lord Ed Lord true false 2023-04-24 HSOC Aims:In recent years, there has been a growing interest in the ways that human health intersects with exposure to nature. This article reports the findings of a research study investigating the experiences of people in South and West Wales who were engaged in a specific type of nature and health intervention: ecotherapy.Methods:Ethnographic methods were used to develop a qualitative account of the experiences of participants in four specific ecotherapy projects. Data collected during fieldwork included notes from participant observations, interviews with both individuals and small groups, and documents produced by the projects.Results:Findings were reported using two themes: ‘smooth and striated bureaucracy’ and ‘escape and getting away’. The first theme focused on how participants negotiated tasks and systems related to gatekeeping, registration, record keeping, rule compliance, and evaluation. It was argued that this was experienced differently along a spectrum between striated, in which it was disruptive to time and space, and smooth, in which it was much more discrete. The second theme reported on an axiomatic perception that natural spaces represented an escape or refuge; in terms of both reconnecting with something beneficial in nature, and also disconnecting from pathological aspects of everyday life. In bringing the two themes into dialogue, it could be seen that bureaucratic practices often undermined the therapeutic sense of escape; and that this was more acutely experienced by participants from marginalised social groups.Conclusions:This article concludes by reasserting that the role of nature in human health is contested and arguing for a greater emphasis on inequities in access to good quality green and blue space. Specific interventions like ecotherapy need funding models that avoid striated bureaucratic processes, and the stress associated with these. Inclusive models of ecotherapy practice could contribute to public health goals related to population engagement with healthy environments. Journal Article Perspectives in Public Health 143 3 173 178 SAGE Publications 1757-9139 1757-9147 mental health; green space; ecotherapy; ethnography; health inequalities; social prescribing 2 5 2023 2023-05-02 10.1177/17579139231170777 COLLEGE NANME Health and Social Care School COLLEGE CODE HSOC Swansea University SU Library paid the OA fee (TA Institutional Deal) The author disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: This work was supported by the Research Capacity Building Collaboration (RCBC) Wales (PhD Fellowship 10/2016-09/2019). 2025-06-06T15:22:53.4053842 2023-04-24T13:47:15.3461414 Faculty of Medicine, Health and Life Sciences School of Health and Social Care - Nursing Ed Lord 0000-0002-5740-2081 1 63231__27593__96822611560047b6b2db0fb8f817bce5.pdf 63231.pdf 2023-05-24T12:28:36.3889940 Output 94841 application/pdf Version of Record true © Royal Society for Public Health 2023. This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License. true eng https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
title Green space for public mental health: an ethnographic study of ecotherapy in Wales
spellingShingle Green space for public mental health: an ethnographic study of ecotherapy in Wales
Ed Lord
title_short Green space for public mental health: an ethnographic study of ecotherapy in Wales
title_full Green space for public mental health: an ethnographic study of ecotherapy in Wales
title_fullStr Green space for public mental health: an ethnographic study of ecotherapy in Wales
title_full_unstemmed Green space for public mental health: an ethnographic study of ecotherapy in Wales
title_sort Green space for public mental health: an ethnographic study of ecotherapy in Wales
author_id_str_mv b18ddb213fe27221edc75356c9eef39d
author_id_fullname_str_mv b18ddb213fe27221edc75356c9eef39d_***_Ed Lord
author Ed Lord
author2 Ed Lord
format Journal article
container_title Perspectives in Public Health
container_volume 143
container_issue 3
container_start_page 173
publishDate 2023
institution Swansea University
issn 1757-9139
1757-9147
doi_str_mv 10.1177/17579139231170777
publisher SAGE Publications
college_str Faculty of Medicine, Health and Life Sciences
hierarchytype
hierarchy_top_id facultyofmedicinehealthandlifesciences
hierarchy_top_title Faculty of Medicine, Health and Life Sciences
hierarchy_parent_id facultyofmedicinehealthandlifesciences
hierarchy_parent_title Faculty of Medicine, Health and Life Sciences
department_str School of Health and Social Care - Nursing{{{_:::_}}}Faculty of Medicine, Health and Life Sciences{{{_:::_}}}School of Health and Social Care - Nursing
document_store_str 1
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description Aims:In recent years, there has been a growing interest in the ways that human health intersects with exposure to nature. This article reports the findings of a research study investigating the experiences of people in South and West Wales who were engaged in a specific type of nature and health intervention: ecotherapy.Methods:Ethnographic methods were used to develop a qualitative account of the experiences of participants in four specific ecotherapy projects. Data collected during fieldwork included notes from participant observations, interviews with both individuals and small groups, and documents produced by the projects.Results:Findings were reported using two themes: ‘smooth and striated bureaucracy’ and ‘escape and getting away’. The first theme focused on how participants negotiated tasks and systems related to gatekeeping, registration, record keeping, rule compliance, and evaluation. It was argued that this was experienced differently along a spectrum between striated, in which it was disruptive to time and space, and smooth, in which it was much more discrete. The second theme reported on an axiomatic perception that natural spaces represented an escape or refuge; in terms of both reconnecting with something beneficial in nature, and also disconnecting from pathological aspects of everyday life. In bringing the two themes into dialogue, it could be seen that bureaucratic practices often undermined the therapeutic sense of escape; and that this was more acutely experienced by participants from marginalised social groups.Conclusions:This article concludes by reasserting that the role of nature in human health is contested and arguing for a greater emphasis on inequities in access to good quality green and blue space. Specific interventions like ecotherapy need funding models that avoid striated bureaucratic processes, and the stress associated with these. Inclusive models of ecotherapy practice could contribute to public health goals related to population engagement with healthy environments.
published_date 2023-05-02T11:14:48Z
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