Passive nature exposure positively predicts prosocial behavior by alleviating perceived crowdedness

Green and blue spaces are the primary components of natural spaces. Prior studies have focused mainly on the positive relationship between green space exposure and prosocial behavior while neglecting the potential influence of blue space on such behavior. The effect of active nature exposure on individuals has been highlighted in previous studies; however, the significant impact of passive nature exposure, which is more commonly experienced in daily life, has been neglected. In this study, we surveyed 374 representative subjects from China and explored the impact of passive nature exposure (passive green space exposure and passive blue space exposure) on prosocial behavior and the mediating effect of perceived crowdedness. The results indicated that both passive green and blue space exposure positively predicted prosocial behavior. Additionally, perceived crowdedness had a significant mediating effect between passive nature exposure and prosocial behavior. Specifically, passive green space exposure positively predicted prosocial behavior by alleviating perceived crowdedness, and similar results were found for passive blue space exposure. Furthermore, when we included both types of nature exposure in one model, the mediating effect of perceived crowdedness between passive green space exposure and prosocial behavior was significantly stronger than the mediating effect between passive blue space exposure and prosocial behavior. We discussed the theoretical and practical implications of the findings in our study.