The acute effects of urban green and countryside walking on psychological health: a field-based study of green exercise

Within the theoretical framework of positive psychology, the effects of single sessions of low to moderate intensity walking on markers of psychological health were studied in two different green exercise environments. Participants were 83 recreational walkers (M age = 62.91, s = 9.33) who completed questionnaires to measure self-esteem and affective states before and after either an urban green or countryside walk. A questionnaire concerning enjoyment of physical activity was completed post-walk. Significant increases in positive affect (p =.02) and decreases in negative affect (p = .004) followed walk completion. Significant increases in self-esteem were found (p =.01), with countryside walkers reporting significantly higher post-walk self-esteem than urban green walkers. Significantly higher levels of enjoyment (p =.04) were reported by countryside walkers. This is potentially an important finding since enjoyment is an important determinant of adherence.