Bangor University DOCTOR of PHILOSOPHY
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Bangor University DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY Can a woodland activity programme benefit participant wellbeing and change the way they use woods? Gittins, Heli Award date: 2021 Awarding institution: Bangor University Link to publication General rights Copyright and moral rights for the publications made accessible in the public portal are retained by the authors and/or other copyright owners and it is a condition of accessing publications that users recognise and abide by the legal requirements associated with these rights. • Users may download and print one copy of any publication from the public portal for the purpose of private study or research. • You may not further distribute the material or use it for any profit-making activity or commercial gain • You may freely distribute the URL identifying the publication in the public portal ? Take down policy If you believe that this document breaches copyright please contact us providing details, and we will remove access to the work immediately and investigate your claim. Download date: 03. Oct. 2021 School of Natural Sciences/School of Psychology Bangor University CAN A WOODLAND ACTIVITY PROGRAMME BENEFIT PARTICIPANT WELLBEING AND CHANGE THE WAY THEY USE WOODS? Heli Gittins Submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy DECLARATION I hereby declare that this thesis is the results of my own investigations, except where otherwise stated. All other sources are acknowledged by bibliographic references. The work is submitted with agreement of my supervisory team (Prof Val Morrison, School of Psychology, Dr Norman Dandy and Dr Sophie Wynne-Jones, School of Natural Sciences). This work has not previously been accepted in substance for any degree and is not being concurrently submitted in candidature for any degree unless, as agreed by the University, for approved dual awards. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Heartfelt thanks to Val Morrison, Sophie Wynne-Jones and Norm Dandy for your dedicated attention throughout the project from conception to completion. Thank you for sharing your extensive expertise and experience from which I’ve learnt so much. I feel very lucky indeed to have had such fantastic supervisors. I would like to thank the Woodland Trust for partnering on this project which was made possible by the Knowledge Economy Skills Scholarships (KESS) programme, supported by European Social Funds through the Welsh Government. Thank you to the KESS office for your patient and attentive administration of the project. A special thank you to Small Woods Association and Actif Woods Wales – to Amie Andrews, to Natasha Simons and to all the woodland mentors and partner organisations who gave me access to your programme in the spirit of openness and learning. A particularly big thank you to all the participants for taking the time and making the effort to reflect and participate and without whom this study would not have been possible. Thank you to all my PhD colleagues for all the encouraging chats and support – especially Rowan, for the ‘PhD survival lunches’ and Liz for the ‘Researching Wellbeing’ group and discussions. Last but not by no means least, a huge and loving thank you to my family and friends for your sustained encouragement, belief and patience over the last few years. ABSTRACT Lifestyle-related illnesses are a major cause of mortality and the health and wellbeing benefits of engagement with the natural environment are well documented. However, certain groups are under-represented in visitor figures, therefore this pathway to wellbeing is being received disproportionately. Nature-based interventions (NBIs) seek to extend benefits to wider, often otherwise marginalised social groups, but there is a lack of long term research meaning that the sustainability of effects is unknown. The primary aim of this study was to develop an improved understanding of one such initiative on personal wellbeing and woodland use over time. The research involved adults with a range of health and social care needs recruited from Actif Woods Wales, a pan-Wales woodland activity programme. A quantitative study assessed participants at baseline (n = 120), end of course (n= 74) and a three month follow up stage (n = 57). A parallel qualitative study enabled an in- depth appreciation of processes of change with five end of course and four follow up focus groups. End of course quantitative results demonstrated significant positive increase across all psychosocial measures, (mental wellbeing, social trust, self-reported health, self-efficacy, self-esteem and physical activity) with particularly marked gains for those who had reported mental health conditions. The study showed that these gains had held at the three month follow up stage providing critical evidence of maintained change. With regard to independent woodland visits, the frequency of visits had increased at course end and the indication at follow up was that this trend continued to rise. Qualitative data showed positive shifts in self-perspective that had followed through to wider lifestyle changes which for some meant breaking out of a ‘rut’ of sedentariness and social isolation. These results were particularly important to understanding the importance of social processes and how confidence gained on the programme had led to increased interaction beyond it. Participant narratives showed how nature was experienced as a kind of ‘balm’ (the sensory experience, the positive impact on mood, feelings of escape) and played an important role in supporting the wellbeing benefits experienced. This altered perception of nature was maintained which had led to more and different use of woodlands (like spending longer there and ‘making more of it’). Breaking down deeply entrenched psychological, emotional and socio-cultural barriers, it was evident that the programme could act as an adult greenspace turning or re-turning point. The study has helped to meet identified gaps for research that furthers understanding of how NBIs can support health, wellbeing and increased woodland use beyond the life of programmes. Findings thus hold implications regarding a need for sustainable funding and support for such projects to embed the role that they can play in delivering both therapeutic and preventative social care. They also point to a role for land managers looking to increase engagement for under-represented groups to consider the role that NBIs can play in broadening access to the benefits of the natural environment. CONTENTS PAGE CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION 1.1 Introduction …………………………………………………………………………………………………………..………………………..1 1.2 Introduction to nature-based interventions ……………………………..…………………………………..…………………2 1.3 Actif Woods Wales ….………………………………………………………………………………………………….……………………3 1.4 Aims and objectives …………………………………………………..……………………………………………………….……………5 1.5 Map of thesis …………………………………………..……………………………………...………………………………………………5 CHAPTER 2 LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 Defining wellbeing ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………8 2.2 A combined approach to measuring personal wellbeing ………………………………………..………………………17 2.3 Natural environment, health and wellbeing …………………..………………………………………………………………18 2.4 Who accesses the natural environment and woodlands? ..................................................................34 2.5 What encourages and discourages access? ........................................................................................37 2.6 Nature-based interventions for health and wellbeing ……………………………………………………………………44 2.7 Research gaps and challenges……………………………………………………………………………….………………………..47 CHAPTER 3 QUANTITATIVE STUDY OF BASELINE DATA 3.1 Aims and objectives …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….…50 3.2 Methods ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..…50 3.3 Results ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………55 3.3.a Psychosocial factors ………………………………………………………………………………………………………….60 3.3.b Woodland use ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………64 3.4 Discussion ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………68 3.4.a Psychosocial factors ………………………………………………………………………………………………………….69 3.4.b Woodland use ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………71 3.5 Conclusion ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..73 CHAPTER 4 QUANTITATIVE STUDY AT END OF COURSE AND FOLLOW UP 4.1 Introduction …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..75 4.2 Methods ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..75 4.3 Analysis ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….77 4.4 Results …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..80 4.4.a Descriptive statistics ……………………………………………………………………………………………………….…80 4.4.b Early change (T2) ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………….82 4.4.c Maintained change (T3) …………………………………………………………………………………………………….87 4.4.d Woodland use ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………..……91 4.4.e Importance of course ……………………………………………………………………………………………………..…98 4.4.f What gained from course ………………………………………………………………………………………………..100 4.4.g Free comments ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………….102 4.5 Discussion ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………103 4.6 Conclusion ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………109 CHAPTER 5 QUALITATIVE STUDY AT END OF COURSE 5.1 Introduction …………………………………………………………………………………………...……………….………………….111 5.2 Methods ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………112 5.3 Results ……………………………………………………..………………………………………………………………………………….115 5.4 Discussion ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………138 5.5 Conclusion ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………145