ArticleVirtual reality2021
Nature in virtual reality improves mood and reduces stress: evidence from young adults and senior citizens.
Article in Virtual reality, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT07533669 (The Effect of a Sensory Modulation Room Applied in the Preoperative Period on Pain, Anxiety, and Sleep in Kidney Transplantation), which is not on this map. Cited by 47 papers, 7 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
The Effect of a Sensory Modulation Room Applied in the Preoperative Period on Pain, Anxiety, and Sleep in Kidney Transplantation: An Innovative Nursing Intervention
Who cites it
47 citing papers in PubMed, 7 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Virtual Reality Interventions for Stress Reduction in the General Population: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials.Journal of medical Internet research · 2026Pooled it
- Physiological Responses to Virtual Reality-Based Stress Regulation and Relaxation Interventions: A Systematic Review.Stress and health : journal of the International Society for the Investigation of Stress · 2026Pooled it
- A systematic literature review and meta-analysis of virtual reality nature effects on higher education students' mental health and wellbeing.Applied psychology. Health and well-being · 2025Pooled it
- Effects of video-based natural restorative environments on mental health: a systematic review.BMC public health · 2025Pooled it
- The use of Virtual Reality (VR) to assess the impact of geographical environments on walking and cycling: a systematic literature review.International journal of health geographics · 2024Pooled it
- The role of connection with nature in empirical studies with physiological measurements: a systematic literature review.Biologia futura · 2023Pooled it
- Effects of immersion in a simulated natural environment on stress reduction and emotional arousal: A systematic review and meta-analysis.Frontiers in psychology · 2022Pooled it
- A Mobile Virtual Reality-Based Intervention for Stress Reduction Among Young Adults: Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial.JMIR mHealth and uHealth · 2026Trial
- Bringing the Green Environment From Outdoors to Indoors Through Virtual Reality for Psychological Well-Being: Quasi-Experimental Study.Journal of medical Internet research · 2026Article
- Effects of Digital Nature Interventions on Positive Psychological Outcomes: A Scoping Review.Behavioral sciences (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Review
- An Exploratory Investigation of the Influence of Setting and Meaning on Emotion Responses to Virtual Reality Environments.Behavioral sciences (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Virtual Nature, Metaverse, and NAD⁺: A Narrative Review for Health Planning and Healthy Ageing.Health science reports · 2026Article
- Virtual reality in psychological interventions for mood disorders: a scoping review.BMC psychiatry · 2026Article
- Personality and spatial familiarity interact to shape affective responses in urban parks: a VR study.Frontiers in psychology · 2026Article
- The indirect effect of physical activity on aggression among university student-athletes: the mediating role of state anger.Frontiers in psychology · 2026Article
- Stressful urban walks: an experimental design for measuring physiological and psychological stress in virtual urban environments.Virtual reality · 2026Article
- Immersive virtual reality-based intervention for psychological wellbeing among older adults: A systematic review and meta-analysis.PLOS digital health · 2026Article
- Using virtual reality urban greenness with peer support to reduce stress and enhance social connection in older adults with mild depression: a pilot randomized controlled trial.Innovation in aging · 2026Article
- How virtual urban green spaces influence stress and risk-taking.Frontiers in psychology · 2026Article
- A nature-based intervention for bereaved friend and family cancer caregivers: a study protocol.Frontiers in public health · 2026Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
6 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Large populations worldwide have been deprived from nature experiences due to mass quarantines and lockdowns during the COVID-19 pandemic, and face a looming mental health crisis. Virtual reality offers a safe and practical solution to increase nature exposure. This research examined the effects of virtual nature using a within-subject design with young adults (Study 1) and senior citizens (Study 2). Results from the young adult sample showed that walking in a virtual forest reduced negative affect due to enhanced nature connectedness, and reduced stress measured by heart rate. Consistently, the senior citizen sample reported improved positive affect due to enhanced nature connectedness after the virtual nature walk. Our findings unveil the underlying mechanism of how virtual nature may improve psychological well-being and demonstrated how virtual nature can be used as an intervention to promote mental health. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s10055-021-00604-4.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.