Effects of Forest-Based Interventions on Mental Health: A Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials

Mi-Jung Kang, Hyun-Sun Kim and Ji-Yeon Kim
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Mi-Jung Kang: College of Nursing, Eulji University, 712, Dongil-ro, Uijeongbu-si 11759, Korea
Hyun-Sun Kim: College of Nursing, Eulji University, 712, Dongil-ro, Uijeongbu-si 11759, Korea
Ji-Yeon Kim: College of Nursing, Eulji University, 712, Dongil-ro, Uijeongbu-si 11759, Korea

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 8, 1-13

Abstract: Forest-based interventions are a promising alternative therapy for enhancing mental health. The current study investigated the effects of forest therapy on anxiety, depression, and negative and positive mental condition through a meta-analysis of recent randomized controlled trials, using the PRISMA guideline. Of 825 articles retrieved from databases including PubMed, EMBASE, CINAHL, Cochrane, and PsycINFO, 6 met the inclusion criteria. The results of this study showed that forest-based interventions improved the mental health of participants in the intervention groups when compared to those in the control groups. Thirty-four outcome variables were analyzed from six studies. The overall effect size of the forest therapy programs was 1.25 (95% CI = 0.93–1.57, p < 0.001), which was large and statistically significant. These findings imply that forest-based interventions can improve mental health as a nonpharmacological intervention. This study is significant in that it is a meta-analysis of mental health that included only high-quality domestic and international RCTs. In future studies, more RCTs related to various forest interventions and studies involving many participants should be undertaken, which will complement heterogeneity in future meta-analysis studies.

Keywords: forest therapy; meta-analysis; mental health; depression; anxiety (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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