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Self-esteem
Self-esteem is measured using the one-page 10-item Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (RSE), which is considered to be the most widely-used and popular self-esteem measure in health psychology and social science research. The scale’s reliability and validity has been demonstrated with many different sample groups and its use has been validated for both male and female adolescents and adult and elderly populations. The RSE consists of 10 statements relating to overall feelings of self-worth or self-acceptance and each item has 4 response choices ranging from strongly agree to strongly disagree.
Rosenberg, M. (1965) Society and the Adolescent Self-Image, Princeton, New Jersey, Princeton University Press. |
Mood
The instrument used to provide a ‘snapshot’ of mood state and quantify any changes in mood factors is the Profile of Mood States (POMS) standardised 30-item short-form one page version. This is an adaptation of the original standard form and is commonly used in studies examining the relationship between mood states and exercise.
The POMS form consists of a list of 30 adjectives, which respondents have to rate individually. A 5-point likert scale format is employed using a scale of 0 to 4, where a ‘0’ indicates “not at all” and a ‘4’ indicates “extremely”. The adjectives collectively measure 6 identifiable mood factors or affective states – tension-anxiety, depression-dejection, anger-hostility, fatigue-inertia, vigour-activity and confusion-bewilderment. These six subscales yield a global estimate of affective state referred to as the Total Mood Disturbance (TMD) score. The TMD score denotes an overall assessment of emotional state and this method is regularly used as it provides an indicator of overall mood. It is calculated by summing the five negative subscales (anger, confusion, depression, fatigue and tension) and subtracting the only positive affect subscale (vigour).
McNair, D. M., Lorr, M. & Droppleman, L. F. (1971) EdITS Manual for the Profile of Mood States, San Diego, CA, Educational and Industrial Testing Service.
Attachment to nature
The connectedness to nature scale (CNS) is a “new measure of individuals’ trait levels of feeling emotionally connected to the natural world”. Connection to nature is considered to be an important predictor of ecological behaviour and subjective well-being. The questionnaire is designed to assess whether being exposed to nature increases an individual’s sense of feeling connected to nature. Scores on the scale range from a minimum of 1 to a maximum of 5, with a score of 5 indicating the most connected to nature.
Mayer, F. S. & McPherson Frantz, C. (2004) The connectedness to nature scale: A measure of individuals' feeling in community with nature. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 24, 503-515.
General health
The General Health Questionnaire (GHQ) is recognised as the industry standard for measuring psychological health. It was originally designed for use with medical outpatients, but since then the state measure has been extensively used in different settings and cultures.
The GHQ-12 is a shortened version which was designed to identify possible psychiatric morbidity in the general population and has been regularly included in the national Health Survey. It is based on a series of twelve questions concerning general levels of happiness, depression, anxiety and sleep disturbance over the past four weeks. Each item has four possible answers and an overall score is constructed from the responses. Two scoring methods are commonly employed including a bi-modal method and a Likert scoring style. The scores derived range from a minimum of 0, which represents excellent mental health to a maximum of 36, which implies a poor mental health state.
Goldberg, D. C. (1978) Manual of the General Health Questionnaire Windsor, NFER Publishing.
Blood pressure
Blood pressure is measured using non-invasive methods. A manual sphygmomanometer is used to collect a one off measure and the Portapres is used to collect ambulatory measurements and monitor beat to beat haemodynamic output. It is portable and based on Finapres technology.
For more information see:
http://www.finapres.com/customers/portapres.php
Cortisol
Cortisol is a stress indicator and acts as an intermediary, which is controlled by your psychological state. Levels of cortisol are measured by taking salivary samples at regular points in the day to generate a cortisol profile.
Typology of engagement with nature
There are many different types of nature and greenspaces in both rural and urban areas ranging from very extensive wilderness to green belts surrounding urban towns, but all contribute significantly to people’s health and quality of life (Table 1).
Table 1 A typology of nature and greenspaces
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Typology
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Examples |
Natural and semi-natural spaces |
- Water, rivers, lakes, ponds, ditches and reservoirs, wetlands, marshes
- Woodland and forests
- Agricultural land
- Nature reserves
- Wild nature
- Meadows
- Cereal crops
- Fields and pastures
- Remnant, vacant land and green belts
- Post industrial / brownfield land
- Urban forestry, grassland, heathlands or moors
- Wastelands, bare rock habitats, scrub
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Parks and gardens |
- Country parks
- Urban parks and formal gardens
- Private domestic gardens
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Green corridors |
- Canal and riverbanks
- Tree belts and woodland
- Road and rail corridors
- Linear green spaces
- Cycling routes
- Disused railways
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Productive greenspace |
- Allotments
- Community gardens
- City farms
- Urban agriculture
- Orchards
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Outdoor sports facilities |
- School playing fields
- Other playing fields and pitches
- Other sports
- Golf courses
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Amenity greenspaces |
- Housing greenspaces
- Informal recreation areas
- Village greens
- Other amenity greenspaces
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Functional greenspaces |
- Cemeteries
- Disused churchyards
- Other burial grounds
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Other public space |
- Street trees
- Sea fronts and promenades
- Civic squares, shopping precincts and market
- Places
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Adapted from Bell et al. (2006)
