Nature or the outdoors? Understanding the power of language in elementary students’ self-reported connection to nature

Abstract

Many previous studies have measured elementary-aged students’ connection to nature (CTN), but few have explicitly considered how the use of different terminology (e.g. ‘nature’ versus ‘the outdoors’) can influence those connections. We utilized a quasi-experimental design to test for differences in affective and self-reported connections to nature among diverse groups of fourth and fifth grade students from two elementary schools in Wake County, North Carolina. We used Mann–Whitney U tests to compare these outcomes between two versions of a survey, one using the word ‘nature’ (n = 112) and one using the word ‘outdoors’ (n = 113), for (1) the whole sample (n = 225) (2) between boys and girls, and (3) between students of color and white students. Self-reported CTN did not vary significantly based on terminology used, but we did find some differences in levels of emotional affinity that students associated with each term. Our results suggest that the differences in which young audiences perceive the terms ‘nature’ versus ‘outdoors’ are nuanced and may offer insight into how language about the environment may invoke different emotions among children.

Keywords:

• Connection to nature
• environmental education
• children
• measurement
• outdoors

Acknowledgments

We would also like to acknowledge and thank Dr. Yu-Fai Leung for his editorial assistance, and Krista Brinchek and Megan Jackson for their participation in this research.

Geolocation information

This research was conducted in Wake County, North Carolina.

Disclosure statement

The authors report there are no competing interests to declare.

Data availability statement

The datasets [Wake County Public School System District Facts] for this study can be found in the [2022–2023 District Facts Report by Year] [https://www.wcpss.net/domain/100].

Additional information

Funding

This research was funded by a U.S. Geological Survey Southeast Climate Adaptation Science Center award [G17AC00204] to Julianne Reas.

Notes on contributors

Julianne Reas

Julianne Reas received her Master of Science in Natural Resources from North Carolina State University’s Parks, Recreation, and Tourism Management program in 2023. Her research examines the human dimensions of natural resource management, specifically focused on the influences of environmental education and experiential learning on pro-environmental behavior with both youth and adult populations.

Kathryn T. Stevenson

Kathryn Stevenson is an associate professor in the Department of Parks, Recreation & Tourism Management at NC State University. Her research and teaching centers around environmental education, including exploring benefits of nature to children and how to best support youth in leading community environmental learning.

Lauren Gibson

Lauren Gibson received her PhD from North Carolina State University’s Parks, Recreation, and Tourism Management program in 2023. Her dissertation research focused on how to conceptualize community-level environmental literacy as well as what factors drive high school students to take individual versus collective action for the environment.

Justin Beall

Justin Beall received his PhD from North Carolina State University’s Parks, Recreation, and Tourism Management program in 2023. His research is focused on examining various socio-psychological predictors of environmentally relevant behavior to provide information for promoting behavior change, improving understanding of the human dimensions of natural resources, communicating about polarizing environmental topics, and marketing sustainable tourism products.

Lincoln R. Larson

Lincoln R. Larson is an associate professor in the Department of Parks, Recreation & Tourism Management within the College of Natural Resources at North Carolina State University. His research explores connections between outdoor recreation, environmental education, and pro-environmental behavior, including the influence of nature on positive youth development.