Longing to be the Mountain: A Scoping Review about Human-Nature Interaction for Health Purposes

Title of the Paper

"Longing to be the Mountain: A Scoping Review about Nature-Centric, Health-Minded Technologies"

Bibliographic Information

• Thematic Area: Interaction with natural environments, health-oriented technologies, design, and Human-Computer Interaction (HCI)
• Keywords:
  • Natural interaction
  • Health and well-being
  • Virtual Reality (VR)
  • Multisensory experience
  • Sustainability
  • Environmentalism
  • Ecosystems
  • Human-Computer Interaction (HCI)
  • Climate change
  • Biophilia

Research Background and Problem

• Identified Issues or Challenges:
  It remains unclear how current technologies can serve as a bridge between the environment and human health, particularly in enhancing natural experiences and supporting health-oriented technologies. Existing research in this area is fragmented.

• Significance of the Problem:

  • In the face of irreversible climate change and rapid depletion of natural resources, the connection between humans and nature is critically important for mental health, physical health, and overall experience.
  • Combining health-oriented technologies (Health-Minded Technologies, HMT) with natural interactions holds immense potential for promoting well-being.

• Research Motivation and Related Work:

  • HCI and related fields have demonstrated the potential for designing nature-centric technologies that enhance attention restoration, reduce stress, and promote mental health.
  • In current research, nature is often simplified into a universal and instrumental concept, leaving the complex relationship between humans and nature underexplored.

Solution

• Method or Solution:

  • This paper adopts a scoping review approach to map the current state of research on nature-centric health technologies.
  • By analyzing 29 academic papers published between 2017 and 2022, it systematically summarizes the applications, definitions, and trends of technologies in this domain.

• Innovative Contributions:

  1. Introduces the concept of "Nature-Centric, Health-Minded Technologies."
  2. Explores and reflects on the hidden design assumptions and narratives in current technology-nature interactions.
  3. Identifies three key research trends:
     • Nature is often simplified and presented as a universal backdrop to life.
     • Health technology activities are predominantly one-dimensional, lacking an understanding of the diversity of human-nature relationships.
     • Technology and natural experiences are isolated, failing to integrate effectively into daily life.

• Implementation Steps and Techniques:

  • Search and Screening: Extracted 3,110 papers from the ACM Digital Library and Scopus databases using a thematic triplet of keywords (nature + technology + health).
  • Filtering and Analysis: Final sample (29 papers) selected through the PRISMA process, with data extracted using graphical methods.
  • Data Insights: Combined qualitative and quantitative analyses to systematically describe the use of technology stacks, experience durations, target groups, and target scenarios in the papers.

Research Findings

• Specific Findings:

  1. Trends in Technology Usage:

     • The most commonly used technologies are VR (Virtual Reality), mobile applications, and interactive prototypes.
     • The primary reasons for technology selection are to enhance the convenience and engagement of natural interactions.

  2. Representation of Nature:

     • Most studies focus on "visual" interactions, providing virtual natural scenes (e.g., simulated forests, grasslands).
     • Nature is primarily presented in realistic, non-abstract forms, with a lack of multisensory and diverse narrative approaches.

  3. Health Promotion Methods:

     • Mainly focus on activities like relaxation and meditation, with nature often treated as a singular medium for stress relief.
     • Few studies explore multi-layered interactions between nature and health (e.g., challenging or emotionally complex activities).

• Comparative Advantages:

  • Compared to traditional research on health and nature interactions, this study emphasizes the role of technology in shaping the integration of nature and health, opening up new design directions for multidimensional natural experiences and theoretical foundations.

• Experiments and Evaluations:

  • While no direct experiments were conducted, conclusions were supported by summarizing and analyzing the 29 papers.
  • Case studies revealed clear comparative trends: differences between real and virtual natural experiences, and quantitative and qualitative data on the impact of technological interventions.

• Limitations and Future Directions:

  1. Limitations:

     • The study sample is primarily from Europe and North America, limiting its representation of global ecological diversity.
     • Most cases in the data lack connections to everyday social and cultural contexts.

  2. Future Directions:

     • Strengthening Cultural and Localized Perspectives: Focus on how technology establishes more authentic relationships between nature and health across different geographic, demographic, and ecological contexts.
     • Exploring Non-Human-Centric Design: Consider the equality of human and non-human roles (e.g., animals, plants) in technology design.
     • Multisensory and Complex Emotional Experiences: Provide users with comprehensive multisensory interaction experiences (beyond vision, incorporating touch, smell, etc.).
     • Reflection and Avoidance of Technological Solutionism: Foster ecological technology integration through policies and community initiatives rather than merely enhancing visibility.

Conclusion

This paper, through a thematic review, reveals the main trends and blind spots in current research on nature-health-technology interactions. It encourages researchers to rethink how to design digital interactions between humans and nature and proposes specific high-level design opportunities to advance the development of this field.