Universal Principles of Design, Revised and Updated

Biophilia Effect

Environments rich in nature views and imagery reduce stress and enhance focus and concentration.1

Poets and philosophers have long held that exposure to natural environments produces restorative benefits. In the past few decades, this claim has been tested empirically and, indeed, it does appear that exposure to nature confers benefits emotionally, cognitively, and physically.2

For example, in a longitudinal study following seven- to twelve-year-olds through housing relocation, children who experienced the greatest increase in nature views from their windows made the greatest gains in standard tests of attention (potential confounding variables such as differences in home quality were controlled).3 A comparable effect was observed ...