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Not Allgreenspace Is Created Equal: Biodiversity Predicts Psychological Restorative Benefits From Urban greenspace

Data support the link between biodiversity and well-being. Our approach uses a focused and well tested survey instrument that, while it is specific to restorative benefits associated with place, has been shown to be consistent and well-grounded in theory.

Wood, et al

Frontiers in Psycohology, Vol. 9, Nov 2018

Ecological richness score had by far the greatest model importance. There is a positive association between site facilities and biodiversity. Restorative benefit is predicted by biodiversity, which explained 43% of the variance in restorative benefit across the parks, with minimal input from other variables. when the associations between different aspects of quality and restorative benefit are compared in models of both parks (n = 11) and individuals (n = 128), the restorative benefit of the parks appears to be predicted principally by biodiversity rather than site facilities. When different demographic groups are compared, the benefits accrued in terms of restoration are independent of age, gender, and ethnicity. These results add to the growing evidence for an important role of biodiversity in driving the ecosystem services that can be derived from urban landscapes.