Environmental Psychology

Abstract

We explore environmental cognition, personality traits, social norms, environmental stress, and the healing environment. Cognition is the learning process of identifying the light, sound, smell, and feel of the space around us and then forming concepts of what we sense and then create visual images in our minds of what we are perceiving. This then allows us to respond appropriately to stimuli and what we believe to be true. Therefore, we review the cognitive theory of environmental learning and then move to an exploration of the social theory associated with environmental learning and our understanding of nature. The use of different epistemological methods gradually unlocks the influencing factors of environmental behaviors, such as personality traits and social norms with the objective of explaining social behavior. Finally, by understanding environmental stress, it becomes apparent that humanity needs redemption and healing through the power of nature, including nourishment of phytoncide, vitamin D, and the exposure to of outdoor environments such as forests and oceans to reduce stress. This then helps restore our physical and mental health and strengthens our thinking and decision-making processes.

The trees come up to my window like the yearning voice of the dumb earth. The fish in the water is silent, the animals on earth are noisy, and the birds in the air are singing. But man has in him the silence of the sea, the noise of the earth and the music of the air.

Rabindranath Tagore, Stray Birds. (1916)

1 Environmental Cognition

We learned about the concept of environmental literacy in Chap. 4, which is comprised of psychological attributes such as environmental knowledge, skills, and attitudes. These attributes cultivate an individuals' environmental literacy and practical capability in achieving professional and social goals in personal environmental education. However, environmental education is not so simple. As a process it requires us to incorporate and balance our professional goals with societal norms and values and our personal views and beliefs on environmental education. The focus on the social goals of environmental education seems odd and why is this important? Environmental psychology is a discussion about social issues that are shaped by learning, feeling, perceiving, attention, memory, thinking, imagination, emotion, will, capability, and behavior (Fig. 5.1).

Fig. 5.1

Environmental psychology is a theory of the development of the processes associated with learning feeling, perception, attention, memory, thinking, imagination, emotion, will, capability, and behavior. The filtering down effect model is a socially, contextually, and culturally-bound goal-driven theory. If environmental knowledge is nothing more than information generated using sound science, then then this is considered real knowledge—especially “actionable” knowledge—by having desires and curiosity, through plotting and play in the real world (Illustrated by Wei-Ta Fang)

First, we discuss the concept of environmental cognition, which is a way of thinking that is beneficial to a person’s survival and social well-being. How can we extend this approach from the perspective of personal psychology to self, other, local communities, and global communities?

Cognition is the process through which the brain recognizes the world around us through our senses and then forms concepts, perceptions of what we sense and then provides us with an image or allows us to visualize what we sense. The act of visualizing and/or remembering allows us to develop strategies to respond to what we sense, which may be further modified by similar or past experiences and what society expects or considers acceptable at the time. This entire process is a psychological function that each human being produces through information. Cognitive processes can be conscious and even unconscious mental models that are based on perception, attention, morphological identification, input, registration, and output that are produce mental models through propositions, imagination, log-in access, and thinking. Therefore, from the perspective of cognitive science, when humans learn in the environment, the intrinsic and/or extrinsic changes that occur are interpreted as “cognitive processes.” This kind of view regards a human being's understanding of the environment as a part of learning, so it is called “cognitive theory.” Environmental education scholars are epistemologists that are different from “stimulus–response” theorists. By repeating the practice of stimulus responses, we can achieve a view of environmental education and learning. If students do not understand the secrets of the environment, even if they practice many times, then there is no way to achieve the effect of learning. For example, in the study of climate, if you do not understand the principles of the atmospheric circulation, then one doesn’t really “understand the environment,” and one cannot make circulation predictions. In the study of biodiversity, you cannot describe the anatomy, morphology, diversity of a species without “understanding the environment.”

1.1 Cognitive Theory of Environmental Learning

Cognitive theory was derived from Gestalt Psychology in the early twentieth century, which values the wholeness of perception. In other words, when humans are in the environment, most people will not pay special attention to the irritation caused by the colorless, and odorless molecules or PM (particulate matter) 2.5 fine suspended particles in the air entering the nasal mucosa. Instead, most people focus on the stimulus provided by the entirety of the environment. Elements such as the plants, animals, sounds, and smells form the mind-body relationship. Environmental epistemology advocates whether human beings have a good learning effect in the face of learning situations and the following conditions need to be considered:

1.1.1 Situational Conflict

The first point that we need to consider is whether a new situation is consistent with an old experience. When human beings face new learning situations in the environment, they usually need to consider existing or similar situations that they’ve experienced and compare them with the new learning content that they are being presented with. When the learning objectives are clear and well understood, this kind of learning situation is more in line with the learning experience that the learner already has, so it’s easier to enter a new situation and learn/assimilate new data. However, if the new data conflict with a person’s original or preconceived ideas, then the new data may not be assimilated or considered questionable.

There are three possible cognitive outcomes in climate change research (Tilbury 1995). The first is scientific consensus; the second is denial; the third is somewhere in between. Scientific consensus on any matter globally is rare, but that doesn’t mean scientists should abandon discussions or solutions on global issues. We forget and need to be reminded periodically (e.g., Covid-19 pandemic) that we are just one, and not necessarily the most important species that inhabits this planet. Remarkably, this devastating virus has brought our species to its knees. The virus doesn’t discriminate based on sex, race, color, or economic status. Our collective actions and behaviors impact all forms of life.

Evolutionary theory states that a species has few options to respond when faced with change: to evolve, migrate, adapt, or go extinct. Despite our jaded views on the outcome of this pandemic and others that are likely to come, environmental literacy will be essential, unified, and integrated into environmental education programs if humanity wants to continue to exist. As environmental educators, it is now our responsibility to inform and educate the public on the options available to survive the issues we are experiencing and will face in the future.

For example, the earth is getting hotter. July is typically the world’s warmest month of the year, but July 2021 outdid itself as the hottest July and month ever recorded, said Rick Spinrad, the Administrator of National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). July 2021 global surface temperatures were 0.93 °C above average, 0.01 degrees above the previous record set in 2016, 2019, and 2020.

In Taipei, Taiwan, in 2018, there were 60 days above 35 °C. In the summer of 2019, the dry and hot air brought from North Africa was transported north into Europe. The heat wave in Gallargues-le-Montueux southern France reached temperatures as high as 45.9 °C, which caused forest fires. Over the last decade the fire season in California is starting earlier and temperatures during the heat waves have been causing devastating fires with the loss of life and property throughout the state. Climate conditions are not expected to change soon, and agricultural practices and water use throughout the state remain unchanged. From a social and root cause standpoint, the people of California (or the world for that matter) either don’t understand how climate change works or they don’t want to know.

Environmental education programs may mitigate some of the more extreme changes, but our survival will require people to understand the world around them and adapt as needed. The temperature in Delhi, India is recorded to rise to 42.4 °C on April 9, 2022. In the summer of 2019, the highest temperature in Churu, Rajasthan, India was 50.3 °C and monkeys in the forest lost their lives. There were 21 heat waves in India in 2010 and in 2018, that number increased to 484 and during that time more than 5,500 people died. If this trend continues, India may be uninhabitable in the future.

1.1.2 Situational Reorganization

When a learning situation changes, a combination of old and new experiences arises, and the reorganization of previous experiences takes place. This kind of learning is not considered to be a fragmented learning experience, but a re-learned experience based on the old experience, injection of the new experience, and the form of the new experience. The cognitive response in this contextual reorganization includes the re-modulation of knowledge, meaning, and belief. This is a systematic view produced by the overall assessment of human cognitive processes, environmental situations, and individual emotions, feelings, and moods.

Vela and Ortegon-Cortazar (2019) assumed that there is a human subject and the external environment, and that the two systems interact. If the input relationship from the situation to the human subject leads to a psychological reaction, then the output from the human subject to the situation is called a human action. Under the influence of the natural environment, this kind of action has the following effects: cognitive response, affective response, and behavioral intention.

The components of the cognitive image include environmental elements that attract human subjects, which may affect human emotional responses and produce positive emotional systemic effects. This is an emotional representation that also has a positive effect on the behavioral intentions of others. Therefore, the emotional response should have a greater impact than the cognitive response (Vela and Ortegon-Cortazar 2019). Through measurement and analysis, we understand the environmental behavior intentions that affect human subjects. That is, in the study of environmental perception and environmental cognition, the existence or absence of environmental motivations, environmental goals, and attitudes to alternatives to environmental action are usually taken for granted. Moreover, the psychological response or process between human subjects and environmental actions is the focus of environmental psychology. These processes include obtaining information from the environment, the content of the information, the representation of environmental perception and cognition, and the judgment, decision making, and selection of the information represented. Knowledge of perceptual and cognitive processes can improve the quality of human environmental life through environmental decision-making, environmental planning, and design.

1.2 The Exploratory Theory of Environmental Learning

Environmental education is a process of learning and exploration, which needs to include cognitive, affective, and technical and participative domains (Tilbury 1995). In the process of constructing environmental competencies, we need to acquire ecological knowledge and interact with society. In addition, the people need to participate in actions as citizens through a sense of responsibility. If the learner is dependent on a place during the learning process, then a natural connection is created. Environment-based learning promotes the relationship between humans and the natural environment, building deep environmental knowledge as well as understanding of the world around the learner. Therefore, incorporation of local knowledge into environmental education activities is critical.

1.3 The Social Theory of Environmental Learning

In 1960s, the “Stimulus–Response Theory” developed by Burrhus Frederic Skinner (1904–1990) reached the peak of operant conditioning (Skinner 1967). But Noam Chomsky (1928–) criticized Skinner’s classic conditioned reflexes and operating conditioned reflexes, which had a serious impact on human-driven psychoanalysis. In 1959, he challenged Skinner’s Verbal Behavior, arguing that pure “stimulus–response theory” could not produce a learning response. So, what mechanism and under what circumstances can effective learning be achieved?

Against this background, Canadian psychologist Albert Bandura (1925–2021), in “Social Learning Theory,” believes that learning is a cognitive process that occurs naturally in a social environment (Fig. 5.2). Teachers can observe or directly instruct the learning that takes place. In addition to observing student learning behaviors, teachers can also provide rewards and punishments, which is called alternative reinforcement. Bandura's Theory extends the traditional theory of behavior, in which behavior is strengthened and controlled, emphasizing the learning of various internal processes, which is important for human learning. Bandura studied the learning process that takes place in interpersonal relationships but didn’t use the Theory of Operant Conditioning to explain it. He thinks that the weakness of conditioned response and reflexive-response learning methods is not that humans have new responses to new stimuli, but that they offset the effects of social variables.

Fig. 5.2

The social theory of environmental learning (modified after Bandura 1977) (revised and illustrated by Wei-Ta Fang)

Skinner uses induction and a step-by-step approach to interpret an answer, using multiple experiments to strengthen the effect of the behavior. However, the reason for a behavior may be due to complex factors brought about by human subjective expectations and reinforced values. For example, children learn socially by observing the expressions on the faces around them. Bandura believes that in the process of growing up, children use observations to learn from people around them. The people are objects for observation and imitation and children learn by imitating what they observe. They may be rewarded for these imitations, which they then repeat because it’s been positively reinforced.

After Bandura developed this set of social learning theories, he did not draw a gap with traditional learning theories but used this set of theories to form a communication bridge between behaviorism and cognitivism. This is because it focused on how psychological factors are involved in learning. Bandura (1977) therefore believed that his theory is an intermediary process and that humans are processors of information and not responders. Humans think about the relationship between their own behavioral responses and their behavioral consequences (Wicker 1969). This is because the discovery of mirror neurons in primates have promoted the development of social learning theories (Williams 2008; Cook et al. 2014). If these psychological factors interfere in the learning process, then the following intermediary processes will be produced:

1.3.1 Note

How much we pay attention to the actions of others. Individuals do not automatically observe the behavior of others and imitate them. We must draw our attention to social behaviors that require imitation. Therefore, we observe many behaviors every day, many of which we ignore. Therefore, attention is the first step in learning (Fig. 5.3).

Fig. 5.3

We must draw our attention to social behaviors (Photo by Max Horng)

1.3.2 Reservations

We remember the extent of this behavior. When we observe behavior, we produce visual and memory stimuli, but do not react immediately. We may notice this behavior, which is not performed immediately after memory retention and short/long-term memory formation.

1.3.3 Copy

We imitate after remembering the behavior shown by others. Although humans see many behaviors every day that we want to be able to imitate, this is not always feasible. We are limited by our bodies, our capabilities, and our technology. We can copy memories, but it takes time to repeat behavior.

1.3.4 Critical Evaluation

Social learning methods consider the thinking process, and thinking determines behavior, which requires patterns of behavior dominated by thoughts and feelings at the time. Humans have considerable cognitive control over their own behavior. In particular, environmental constraints have a major impact on human behavior. Therefore, if environmental education is based on environmental information and teaching, the cultivation of environmentally friendly citizens can be limited. This is because the promotion of environmental education, cannot underestimate the complexity of human behavior. Pro-environmental behavior may be due to the natural biological factors and our interactions with the environment, resulting in a better explanation of better social behavior.

2 Personality Traits

Personality traits are the key to influencing human environmental behavior and one of the important elements in the decision-making process. In the past, there were few studies on environmental behaviors and personality traits (Kollmuss and Agyeman 2002; Dalvi-Esfahani et al. 2020). Scholars believed that personality traits and environmental behaviors were only related and not causal (Ajzen and Fishbein 1977; Fraj and Martinez 2006; Brick and Lewis 2016). In the study of personality traits, the generation of responsible environmental behavior is an important subject in environmental education (Harland et al. 2007; Dalvi-Esfahani et al. 2020). Although the causes of responsible environmental behaviors are complex (Hines et al. 1987), we hope that through different epistemological methods, we will gradually identify and understand the factors that influence environmental behavior, which will help to explain social behavior.

Tracing back the process of human behavior, personality traits are the key factors that affect human behavior (Ajzen 2005). According to the theory of social learning (Keen 2005), the emergence of responsible environmental behavior is not conceivable by a simple correlation path among a set of mindsets (Wals 2011). Therefore, we proceed from the past theory of responsible environmental behavior, explore the causal relationship among personality traits, and further explore the structural path from personality traits to responsible environmental behavior.

2.1 Personality Traits Responsibility

After constructing a research framework based on the theory of responsible environmental behavior, we examine the relationship between personality traits and environmental behavior. Among them, Pettus and Giles (1987) found that there is an inseparable positive correlation between good environmental attitudes and personality characteristics of self-control and determination. If we look for personality traits from a psychological perspective, then we can find that the Big Five personality traits have been widely used in psychological research (McCrae and Costa 1987). They are: openness to experience, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism. The characters have been used in Myers-Briggs type indicator and most other personality trat tests (Myers 1962).

2.1.1 Openness to Experience

Openness to experience including extensionality, shows that a person is curious, eager to learn, creative, and imaginative. They may possess active or physical skills such as independence, imaginative, responsive to art and beauty, attentive to their own feelings, willing to try new activities, intellectually curious, and advocate to freedom. However, they may not be restricted by tradition, like novelty, boldness, taste new, and intuitive thinking. They tend to be highly conservative, down-to-earth, observant, conventional, and a simple, but are considered to be lack creativity, think narrowly, lack curiosity, unwilling to take risks, non-artistic, and lead a routine life.

2.1.2 Conscientiousness

A Conscientious person has passion for work and a sense of responsibility in their work as a "tendency to respond in certain ways under certain circumstances" (Roberts et al. 2009, 2014). They are organized, efficient, systematic, practical, pragmatic, responsible, reliable, stable, self-disciplined, unyielding in matters, and self-reliant. When rigor is viewed from the opposite angle, it is called indirectness (Thurstone 1929).

2.1.3 Extraversion

Extraverts like group life, fun, talkative, active, and communicative, with spontaneity, dominance and vitality, explicit emotions, affectionate and warm characteristics, not lonely, outstanding performance in the group, vitality, and good at interpersonal relationships.

2.1.4 Agreeableness

Agreeable people are cooperative, trustworthy, and helpful. In addition, high affinity is often considered to be compassionate, soft-hearted, highly cooperative, tolerant, helpful, generous and trustworthy, warm, kind, selfless, broad-minded, good-natured, and tolerant, forgiveness, flexibility, cheerfulness, modesty, courteous, comfortable life, straightforward and easy to be deceived. However, people with low agreeableness are considered cold, heartless, rude, selfish, mean, serious, low cooperation, high criticality, narrow-minded, harsh people, often vengeful, stubborn, cynical, thoughtful, and proud.

2.1.5 Neuroticism

The opposite angle of emotional stability is called neuroticism. Neuroticism is often considered anxious and self-doubtful; or tends to be irritable, stubborn, impatient, impulsive, emotional, often irritable, tense, suspicion, jealous, self-pity, and insecure, often making people worried and considered weak and subjective. On the other hand, people with high emotional stability are often considered calm and comfortable, often relaxed, and safe, patient, easily self-satisfied, impulsive, not jealous, strong and with objective.

2.2 The Green Personality Traits

The relationship between personality traits and environmental behavior is complicated and we discuss research performed by several scholars. For example, people with a high degree of openness to experience can appreciate nature with a wider perspective (Hirsh 2010). In environmental protection and green consumption behavior, personality traits are positively correlated with ecological consumption behavior (Fraj and Martinez 2006). In the eco-consumption market, extroversion, affinity, and rigor are the characteristics of consumers. In addition, agreeableness and openness to experience can highly predict the degree of environmental attention (Hirsh 2010). Conscientiousness is positively correlated to waste management behaviors such as recycling and waste reduction. Extraversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, and neuroticism affect environmentally friendly tourism behaviors (Kvasova 2015). People with high emotional stability were significantly associated with environmental values and neuroticism was associated with saving electricity (Milfont and Sibley 2012).

People with “green personality” traits are generally open to experience, conscientious, and extraverted influenced on their environmental attitude to touch and experience in the real world (Figs. 5.4 and 5.5; Brick and Lewis 2014).

Fig. 5.4

Openness to experience will affect pro-environmental behavior (Photo by Max Horng)

Fig. 5.5

People with high personality traits can affect attitudes and thus have a positive effect on the concept of control (Photo by Wei-Ta Fang)

Openness to experience will affect pro-environmental behavior attitudes through environmental awareness (Poškus 2018); neuroticism will be affected by attitudes toward pro-environmental behavior through environmental awareness and expectations of environmental conditions in future (Chiang et al. 2019). We should employ this neurotic group to change their behavioral defaults and to empower their pro-environmental behavior (Poškus 2020). However, extroversion will affect environmentally-friendly attitudes through environmental awareness (Brick and Lewis 2016).

Among the five personality traits, they have an explicit nature, such as explained the connection between nature connectedness and personality (Lee et al. 2015). The relationship between nature and human’s common personality correlates. Specifically, Lee et al. (2015) declared that the openness to experience and honesty–humility personality. Although some personalities can be hidden, whether it is emotional stability, extraversion, openness, affinity, and rigor, they can be perceived in human daily life (Eaton and Funder 2001; Hermes and Riedl 2021). If these personality traits are related to attitudes, control concepts, and personal responsibility, then teachers can adjust the content of the material being taught by observing the personality traits of learners so that the content is relevant.

3 Social Norms

In Sect. 5.2 of this chapter, we focused on the personality traits of people that could affect environmental behavior. Social norms are important and need to be considered, especially at a time when global development is emphasizing sustainable development, it is important to develop environmentally friendly behaviors.

3.1 Specification

In Chap. 5, we pointed out that personal attitudes affect behavior, but in addition to personal factors, behavioral performance can be modified by social requirements (Fig. 5.6). In many cases, even if someone does not want to participate or comply, the need/desire to fit-in or peer pressure drives compliance (Heberlein 2012). Among the social norms that affect environmental behavior are broken down into subjective, injunctive, and descriptive norms.

Fig. 5.6

Social norms are the expectations that people around us such as close partners and friends impose on us, which then modifies our behavior (Photo by Max Horng)

3.1.1 Subjective Norms

Subjective norms can affect one of the variables of environmentally friendly behavior. The greater the pressure of normative support or opposition, the stronger the impact on behavioral intentions (Bock et al. 2005; Vermeir and Verbeke 2006). Subjective norms are related to the people around you.

3.1.2 Injunctive Norm

Injunctive norm can affect environmentally friendly behaviors when there are penalties and/or rewards for compliant/non-compliant behaviors. In an experiment of discarding advertising bills, the parking lot walls were affixed with orders and specifications to maintain cleanliness, and the parking lot was kept clean. In the parking lot without ordering specifications, more than 30% of the subjects would litter posting advertisements (Keizer et al. 2008). Among the experiments describing the specifications, the experiment group is a description specification experiment that maintains cleanliness, and the control group is a description specification experiment that randomly discards advertisements. The former experiment can maintain the environment clean and tidy in the parking lot, and the latter is a scattered advertisement list (McKenzie-Mohr 2011).

3.1.3 Descriptive Norm

Descriptive norms are people’s personal feelings.

3.1.4 Subjective Norms

Subjective norms are people’s perception of a particular behavior, which is influenced by the judgment of important others. With this norm, one personally feels people around them (Hernández et al. 2010; Thøgersen 2006).

Box 5.1: The Types of Norms

• 1. Injunctive norms: Injunctive norms is based on the principle of rewards and punishments for environmental protection, conduct recognized activities, and comply or violate relevant laws and regulations with rewards or penalties (Heberlein 2012; Hernández et al. 2010; McKenzie-Mohr 2011; Thøgersen 2006)

• 2. Descriptive norm: Individuals observe whether important people around them will engage in a specific behavior (Goldstein et al. 2008; Heberlein 2012; Hernández et al. 2010; McKenzie- Mohr 2011; Thøgersen 2006)

• 3. Personal norms: Personal moral norms/personal ethics, personal self-expectation, a moral obligation feeling to perform certain actions, is regarded as a concept of self-worth (Bamberg and Möser 2007; De Groot and Steg 2009; Heberlein 2012; Hernández et al. 2010; McKenzie-Mohr 2011; Stern 2000; Thøgersen 2006)

3.2 Direct and Indirect Paths for Social Norms to Predict Environmentally Friendly Behavior

Social norms affect environmentally friendly behaviors, including direct and indirect effects. Social norms can directly affect environmentally friendly behaviors such as saving energy, maintaining environmental cleanliness, and protecting the natural environment.

Social norms can be predictive variables for environmentally friendly behavior (Mobley et al. 2010). In the discussion of the impact of social norms on environmental behavior, scholars believe that social norms produce a direct path that can directly predict behaviors, and some scholars believe that social norms produce an indirect path (Wiidegren 1998). The path relationship is through the influence of individual psychological variables, and psychological variables to influence behavior. However, depending on the type of environmental behavior, there are also gaps in the way social norms influence behavior (Hernández et al. 2010; Thøgersen 2006). In the experiment of saving water in hotels, the slogans of order specification and description specification were set up separately, requiring guests to use towels repeatedly to avoid unnecessary washing. The results of the experiment show that both injunctive norms and descriptive norms can affect environmental behavior (Keizer and Schultz 2018); however, conflict between the injunctive and descriptive norm produces weaker intentions (Smith et al. 2012). Descriptive codes are slightly more powerful than command codes (Goldstein et al. 2008). In addition, in household resource recycling behaviors, it was found that the descriptive norms are the same as the three variables of attitude, perceived behavior control, and subjective norms, and have predictive power for environmental behaviors (Wan et al. 2017). Descriptive norms can predict behavioral intentions in the use of public transportation's environmental behavior (Bissing-Olson et al. 2016).

This research incorporates descriptive norms into a psychological model to understand the impact of norms on behavioral intentions and environmentally friendly behaviors from environmental concern (Minton and Rose 1997). In the Park and Sohn (2012) study it was found that both injunctive and descriptive norms affect environmental behavior. According to a literature review, Thøgersen (2006) found a low correlation between injunctive norms and personal norms and subjective norms were highly correlated with personal norms. In his correlation analysis, subjective norms, description norms, and environmentally friendly behaviors were moderately correlated. The results of regression analysis showed the subjective and description norms all affected personal norms, and personal norms affected environmental behaviors. Descriptive norms affect not only the pathways that influence individual norms and then environmental behaviors, but also the direct pathways that directly affect environmental behaviors (Thøgersen 2006). Hernández et al. (2010) explored social norms, personal norms, and environmental behavior. According to the results of their path analysis, the order norms affected the subjective norms, the subjective norms influenced the individual norms, and the individual norms then influenced the path of the environmental behaviors, and the descriptive norms directly affect environmental behaviors. Command norms can affect subjective norms and personal norms in an indirect way, which then affects environmental behaviors. Subjective and descriptive norms can influence personal norms and environmental behaviors in a more direct way than command norms.

4 Development Pressure

Do you have or feel any environmental pressure from human development (Larkham 1990)? Why human development has been led a pressure? The concept of development pressure is clearly determined by Larkham during 1990s. Many developing countries have experienced unprecedented economic growth decoupled from resource conservation under complex environmental loadings. Human development could be represented as a total anthropogenic pressure (Poikane et al. 2017), and many scholars also developed their indices proposed in their papers, i.e., environmental pressure index (Gómez-Navarro et al. 2009); total anthropogenic pressure intensity index (Poikane et al. 2017), and human sustainable development index (in a positive way) (Bravo 2014) to measure an intensity index for urban development planning. For example, urban sprawl puts pressure on land and natural resources, resulting in undesirable outcomes with development pressure. However, pressure indicators could be more responsive and more sustainable policy relevant in many countries.

Why do we need to study human settlements? And how can we improve human settlements? Whey we have “development pressure” from human settlements? We need to know some issues why occur and how occur since human settlement with a poor quality of life (QoL) and low level of functioning (LoF) could be related to some pressures from developing issues dedicated to socio-demographic factor related to populations about their mental and physical health (Grassi et al. 2020).

If it is said that almost 11,000 years ago, Jericho, a Palestinian city in the West Bank in the Middle East, appeared to be the first settlements in human history. The first visitors tried to cool the hot weather, avoid floods, prevent deserts, and other natural disasters, and strive to change human behavior in space use. Scholars’ research on settlements is a space concept that describes human dwellings and their surrounding aggregates (Larkham 1990). This humanistic space and environment are the research area of settlement environment. However, the settlements are dominated by village-type houses, and their formation and development have become the main component of the human landscape, such as the “webs of skyscrapers” in the surface block, see Fig. 5.7.

Fig. 5.7

Construction is an art to mankind; architecture is a benefit to mankind, the 101 tower and a spider are two of the symbolic conflict images in Taipei, Taiwan (Photo by Max Horng)

In the early days of human history, the Bible recorded that human had various dwellings 1656 years before the flood. The Bible recorded that after the flood, humans built the tower of Babel, which displeased God (Genesis 11: 3–4). An important filial piety of Buddhism, Kṣitigarbha Bodhisattva Pūrvapraṇidhāna Sūtra, Budda told to Kṣitigarbha Bodhisattva: “When born, but do good deeds, enrich the house, make the land happy, support the son and mother, have a great peace, and benefit.”

Construction is an art to mankind, while architecture is a benefit (Taylor 2009; Labonnote et al. 2016). At a time when population is growing, water resources are becoming depleted, arable land, is disappearing, and ecological disasters are becoming more prevalent, the environmental sciences are emerging in the world could be considered an historic moment. We need to understand how humans multiply and our relationships with the environment (Fig. 5.8). Currently, the natural and anthropogenic environments are in conflict. Sustainability in urban and rural environments is a discipline that exposes the impact of human settlements on the natural environment (Yassi et al. 2001; Barton 2005).

Fig. 5.8

Sustainable urban and rural environment is a discipline that exposes the impact of human settlements on the natural environment (Women dressed Japanese kimono visited old buildings with full of curiosity, peace, and joy in Kyoto, Japan) (Photo by Max Horng)

Humans have overcome environmental pressures, showing human victory over the environment. However, because the subjects and objects of environmental pressures are unknown, environmental scientists and sociologists call it environmental pressure, while psychologists call it environmental stress due to development. The content is different, and the analysis is as follows:

4.1 Developing Pressure Defined by Environmental Scientists

Environmental pressure indicators reflect the impact of human activities on the environment, including environmental impacts caused by anthropogenic environmental pressure, which has caused substantial environmental problems. Environmental pressure includes exhaust gases, wastewater, and waste we generate. The system recovery is due to elasticity and resilience to restore its carrying capacity (Fig. 5.9). Humans and the pollution produced have caused environmental impacts and environmental protection problems that all depend on environmental scientists to propose solutions for environmental protection. But science alone cannot provide the solutions. We need to consider the social and economic aspects. Due to human resistance to environmental stress events and the pursuit of survival and happiness, humans will think about how to reduce stress and solve environmental problems. When stress occurs, there will be periodic reactions such as alertness, resistance, and fatigue (Taylor et al. 2006; Olson 2007). These stresses have physiological and psychological effects. Next, we will take counter measures to the attitudes, ethics, environmental protection experience, and awareness of the consequences of environmental stressors.

Fig. 5.9

Environmental pressure defined by environmental scientists could be applied to an entire ecosystem or an organism from stable structure toward unstable structure (Illustrated by Wei-Ta Fang)

4.2 Marine Impact and Stress Defined by Environmental Scientists

According to Fig. 5.9, we countered by nature, and caused depletion of marine resources. As marine resources dried up, fish stocks and coral reefs were declining (Figs. 5.10 and 5.11). The importance of environmental awareness to sustainability in fishing has been emphasized. The purpose of environmental awareness is to promote minimal impact on the environment and to advance the sustainability of the marine environment. Marine sustainability relies on developing positive environmental perspectives and fostering pro-environmental behaviors among fishing. To increase the awareness of biodiversity, we should provide training and education at legal fishing, which aim at informing fishers about improper behaviors that damage natural features they encounter. Take legal fishing as an example. Because of the emphasis on environmental resources, fishermen have adopted legal fishing methods, which have no environmental impact on traditional fishing. However, because of depletion of marine resources, fish stocks have been greatly reduced, and fishers cannot catch fish. Reduced income has created a social phenomenon of poverty from blue economy (Farmery et al. 2021).

Fig. 5.10

Bottom trawls and fishing gears could be led harm to fisheries and to the marine environment by catching juvenile fish, damaging the seafloor, and leading to overfishing as well as coral reef damage. Bottom trawl nets can also harm sharks, and sea turtles we have detected in coral reefs (Illustrated by Wei-Ta Fang)

Fig. 5.11

Environmental harm to deep-sea coral reefs on seamounts has been widely attributed to be lack of management from fishing and marine sports. Therefore, we need to train useful diving skills to learn more environmentally friendly behaviors for the seafloors. Marine sport training activities may also adopt an adaptive way to adjust their works beyond illegal fishing as a legal diving tour guided to instruct coral reef watch underwater (Illustrated by Wei-Ta Fang)

We evaluate resources, strategies, and fishing effects if fishermen cope with stress from government. Inequality is likely to be an important factor in fisheries governance outcomes across a range of different societies (Fabinyi et al. 2015). We find that illegal fishing has created greater environmental problems, and the fishermen’s economy has become richer, but the way they cope with the pressure has produced a wealthy situation, but the coral reef resources have been more exhausted.

Human beings use action to control or change psychological adaptation. One is to be comfortable with poverty, thinking that poverty is the result of morality and wisdom; the other is to take risks and take direct action to change the bad relationship between humans and the harsh environment around them. For example, at the risk of being arrested, trawling could be hidden into marine protected areas. Of course, fishermen may also adopt an adaptive way to adjust their emotions and cognition. For example, during the whale watching without illegal fishing (Chen and Chang 2017), they try to relax their emotions and watch the whale dolphin hunt their prey; or the whale watching dolphin who switches to ecotourism to protect coral reefs toward sustainable life (Fig. 5.11). Work to solve livelihood issues. However, if the income of marine ecotourism is not abundant, fishermen themselves cannot improve their meager income. If they think that switching from fishing to the tourism industry will not improve their final family income results, they will then have “I listen to experts and scholars’ suggestions to change;” “Eco-tourism, but it's useless.” If the economy’s income is extremely short, then it’s cognitively felt that a single person’s actions to protect marine resources will not affect the final depletion of marine resources, and it will become even more emotionally frustrated, “learning helplessness.”

4.3 Climate Change Impact and Stress Defined by Environmental Scientists

Into the twenty-one century, human society has undergone tremendous changes. Due to the continued warming of the climate, seven severe typhoons hit Taiwan in 2001. By 2003, heat waves were raging in Europe, and the Greater Paris area warmed to 41.9 °C. In Europe, 70,000 people died of heat exhaustion (Robine et al. 2008). Hurricane Katrina invaded the United States in 2005, killing 1245 people and causing losses of up to US$ 125 billion. In 2008, severe snowstorms occurred in mainland China, and national traffic was paralyzed. In 2011, a severe tropical hurricane Yasi struck Australia. As the river skyrocketed, earth flows, sediments, and pesticides also polluted the ocean, the Great Barrier Reef, was affected. Heavy waves hit southern France again in 2019, reaching temperatures as high as 45.9 °C.

From the cataclysm of the natural environment, climate change, the environmental resources are becoming increasingly scarce. We may illustrate that the current climate change has caused a catastrophe in the fisheries and has created environmental pressure. This pressure has produced changes in the ecosystem. Obviously, marine species will be affected. However, to what extent climate change has caused environmental impacts; and which species are most vulnerable, scientists still have diverse opinions and still cannot give definitive answers. This illustrates that species have physiological limits, and they all migrate due to ocean warming.

Of course, we will look for answers from the fossil record, and most species have continued to exist on Earth during past climate changes. For the prediction of future impacts, scientists predict a wide range of species declines and regional extinctions, and species will also try to adapt or migrate. Therefore, through the climatic changes of the twentieth century, many species enter the twenty-first century in a state that reflects the changes of the environment, but will change the scope, limits, and type representation of survival. In addition, the reasons for the decline in species diversity are still largely unclear. However, recent climate-related reports that the species are gradually declining can still be used as a reference for recent research results, while helping guide current indicators for ecosystem management.

5 Healing Environment

The environment can cause human stress. Under the influence of the environment, we try to resist, slow down, or adjust the pressure brought by the harsh environment; however, in a comfortable situation, the environment can also heal the tired mind of human beings.

In the East, the healing environment is the place to create physical and mental healing. The goal of healing is mainly to reduce stress, which can reduce physical health, mood swings, and adjust logical thinking processes. For physical and mental symptoms of stress, the traditional eastern beliefs in the healing power of nature, such as Ayurveda in India, is an ancient healing tradition. In traditional India, it is recommended to spend each day in nature to let the senses experience the wonders of human existence. Nature can shift our attention beyond our own sphere and allow the ego to be inextricably connected with the universe (Vaillant 1995; Gardner 2006) (Fig. 5.12).

Fig. 5.12

Assembly photos. In the East, the healing environment is the place to create physical and mental healing. You need to take a rest, and understand that you’ll probably feel the best to your physical conditions eventually. Left (Wei-Ta Fang, Taipei, Taiwan, June 1, 2021): This photo explores the physiological correlates of a highly practiced Kundalini Yoga as a self-protected meditator (Arambula et al. 2001; Jung 2012) from thoracic and abdominal breathing way under the guidance of a competent teacher, Master Yen-Chen Cheng; Right (Wei-Ta Fang, Taipei, Taiwan, April 25th, 2021): You need to run by yourself, and running alone is still the best way to reduce your risk from Covid-19 during 2020 to 2023. Wei-Ta Fang is keeping getting in 30–60 min of moderate activity, with full daily nutrition from Angel Wings House directed by Max Horng, and he also got his booster shot as an additional dose of a vaccine for three shots to increase his immune system to keep viruses at bay. His philosophy is how to survive to live alone and not feel lonely or socially isolated? You need to learn self-isolation staying out of your room, that means your need to stay outdoors and completely avoiding contact with other people with your face mask during the COVID-19 Pandemic (Martinelli et al. 2021) (Self-photos by Wei-Ta Fang)

Humans have always been interested in the healing power of nature. In the West, the most famous case is Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862), who spent two years of quiet time in Lake Walden, Concord, Massachusetts. When he wrote, it was also about life and nature that is the classic meditation process. In 1845, Thoreau felt the outdoor environment of the forest, allowing him to enjoy peace of mind and improve his health.

In addition, natural connection can enhance the spiritual level and strengthen the deep self-awareness. We can think about ourselves as being part of a larger universe than we can imagine. We can think about the warmth of entering my motherhood in my childhood and feeling the comfort of my mother. After you grow up, you often need to enter the natural environment to observe yourself and experience simple things to reconnect with natural motherhood. For example, we can walk barefoot in a mossy forest and feel “the sun spreads the net to catch the low temperature in the moss”; a natural connection of foam itching on the soles of the feet.

In recent years, eco-psychology has explored the relationship between humans and the natural world. Spending time in nature can reduce human stress and help relieve stress, thereby forming a healing environment to improve overall happiness. In healing environment, it can be basically divided into natural environment and man-made environment.

5.1 Natural Environment

When humans are exposed to nature, people often feel more generous, more connected to the community, and even more socially aware. Therefore, even just looking at photos of nature can enhance the sense of human-biological connection, thereby reminding humans of basic environmental values, such as generosity and care. A series of studies in the Journal of Environmental Psychology proved that people who are exposed to nature every day, although only 20 min, have a higher overall energy level and a better mood (Fig. 5.13). The reasons are as follows.

Fig. 5.13

Sunshine provides us with vitamin D nourishment (Yehliu, New Taipei City, Taiwan) (Photo by Principal C.H. Chang of Yehliu Primary School)

5.1.1 Vitamin D

It is a good way to spend sunny days outdoors (Beute and de Kort 2013). Let’s put a smile on our faces. Sunshine provides us with vitamin D, calms emotions, regulates the nervous system, and improves seasonal affective disorder (SAD) in cold and gloomy winters. Because human beings surrounded by natural light have higher productivity and healthier lives. In addition, vitamin D can also promote the absorption of calcium in the body, and an appropriate amount of vitamin D can minimize the risk of hypertension, cancer, and other autoimmune diseases.

5.1.2 Phytoncide

What we smell in a forest, especially a conifer forest are phytoncides that have been volatilized. Phytoncides are antimicrobial compounds, called allelochemicals and these compounds can inhibit the growth of bacteria fungi, and other plants around the trees that produced the allelochemicals. In addition, smelling volatilized phytoncides can reduce blood pressure, stress, strengthen the function of parasympathetic nerves, improve sleep quality, and self-healing (Li et al. 2009; Putra et al. 2018). Walking through forests, enjoying the smell, and relaxing is a concept now called forest bathing. Regardless of the type of forest pinene is usually the most common and has bactericidal and exhilarating human health and wellness effects (Fig. 5.14).

Fig. 5.14

Phytoncide is highest in Taiwan fir, cedar, and camphor tree in the waterfall group (left: forest trails; right: waterfalls) (Photos by Max Horng)

5.1.3 Saliva Starch

When humans are stressed, they release hormones, including glucocorticoids and catecholamines. Non-invasive measurements of saliva, such as salivary alpha-amylase (sAA) and salivary cortisol (sC), can be used (Rohleder et al 2006; Nater et al. 2007; Bach et al. 2021). To quantify the stress caused by the human, a social psychological stress response occurs as a biomarker of experienced fear (Buchanan et al. 2010). In a quiet and safe healing environment, psychological stress and saliva alpha-amylaseare are reduced (Minowa and Koitabashi 2012).

5.2 The Comfortable Environment

From the perspective of psychological cognition, we explored the environment based on the five senses, and then perform environmental cognition, which will be manifested in other aspects, from personality traits to external performance, and affected by social norms. Modeling external behavior should go under the influence of the environment and how do we resist the harsh environmental pressures? How can we achieve the effect of environmental healing in a comfortable environment?

The pleasant leisure environment can be indoor or outdoor environments. Human beings need to be free from daily life and enter a resting and recharging state where they can rest, meditate, and quietly experience their surroundings, sounds, and smells. A basic form of meditation is to bring self-attention to the present, rather than indulging in the past or worrying about the future. That is, stress and anxiety can be minimized.

To eliminate environmental stressors the healing environment needs to be connected to nature. And to enhance your sense of control and reduce the background noise of daily life, we need to find a quiet place to spend time to relax.

5.3 The Postnatal Environment

After human beings are born, they are torn from the mother's body and need to seek opportunities for social support (Martell 2001). At the moment of contact with the air, alienation of oneself begins. This kind of alienation produces self-perception from cognition, such as the development of touch, vision, and hearing; it begins to learn to classify (Given 2002).

The human baby then felt deprived of him, felt strange to the environment, and gradually alienated from his mother. As the mother and child are separated, the baby develops a sense of weakness, isolation, and maternal alienation. Due to the social environment, human babies need to learn peers, perform peer demonstrations, and learn about the alienation of the postnatal environment. Therefore, in the postpartum environment, it is necessary to provide a space for privacy for mothers and infants, provide an interactive context for mothers (Keefe 1988), and accompany the mother music developed for the healthcare environment to provide postpartum depressed mothers and anxious babies. The feelings of peace, hope, and connection, are providing opportunities for relaxation, peace, and relief.

5.4 Surfing in a Safe Virtual Environment After COVID-19 Pandemic?

Nowadays, smartphones are becoming increasingly popular that have brought many changes to our day-to-day “surfing lives,” particularly with the ease of access to a vast variety of mobile applications for the purpose of internet browsing, gaming, social networking, communication after Covid-19 pandemic (Fang et al. 2021). This phenomenon has seen the number of smartphone users grow steadily from 2.5 billion in 2016 to 2.9 billion in 2018, and is expected to reach 3.8 billion by 2021 globally. If the smartphone technology has changed a human’s growth and development, then there is evidence to support a close correlation between health, behavior and smartphone use (Fang et al. 2021). The adults and children who spent extended amount of time on smartphone in a day are more likely to exhibit a stronger negative pro-environmental behavior (Kesebir and Kesebir 2017). A. Several different aspects of smartphone usage have been detected, including: the effects of smartphone usage on children’s academic performance, the relationship between smartphone usage and stress, and relationship between smartphone usage and social anxiety and loneliness (Gao et al. 2016). This is particularly important because our experiences gained through interactions with the environment during the early human development phase can have a considerable influence on a person’s perception of the environment (Bandura 1986), not just a virtual environment (Fang et al. 2021).

6 Summary

Environmental education is the process of mastering the knowledge of environmental science and environmental psychology from the teaching experience, integrating different types of knowledge in different natural and social disciplines, and applying it to the teaching of “psychologize”—teaching objectives. Therefore, in this chapter, through environmental cognition, personality traits, social norms, environmental stress, and healing the environment, the experience under the framework of environmental psychology is embodied in understanding and realizing the characteristics of the natural environment and environmental cultivation. Environmental cultivation is a self-evident natural feeling (Fig. 5.15).

Fig. 5.15

The experience under the framework of environmental psychology is embodied in understanding of the natural environment. See Monica Kuo’s work, she is the Department Head of Landscape Architecture, Chinese Culture University, Taiwan (Pratas Island, in the northern part of the South China Sea) (Photo by Wei-Ta Fang)

The Shakyamuni Buddha slaps flowers and His Holiness smiles. This is a kind of silent education, which completely transforms the human beings' understanding of humanity from an external situation. This requires not only the teachers’ understanding of the diversity of environmental education, but also the value of the environment and the purpose of life. These two levels are important for teachers. In addition to the learner's understanding, the teachers also needed to inspire the learner's actions. At the same time, the human population has continued to expand. Although it has driven unprecedented economic growth, the earth has paid a price for human development. The rich and the poor are obviously uneven, and pollution is everywhere. To this day, environmental protection is not just a national and social issue, but an environmental psychological issue that has become part of an individual's values. The key question at the present time is whether human beings can develop the economy in a way that respects the ecological boundaries of the planet and supports the estimated 9.7 billion people in the middle of the twenty-one century. It has become the greatest collective psychological pressure on humankind to face sustainable development worldwide.