The researchers found that even when compared to big life factors like marriage and work, living in a greener area had a significant effect on life satisfaction.
Minnehaha Park, Minneapolis, photo by Steve Kelly

People living in urban areas with more green space tend to report greater well-being than their city dwelling counterparts who don't have parks, gardens, or other green space nearby, according to new research published in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science.

While such research and findings might come under the heading, "Research That Tells Us What We Intuitively Already Know," the results show that, even stacked up against other factors that contribute to life satisfaction, living in a greener area has a significant effect.

The study was a national longitudinal survey of households in the United Kingdom done by Mathew White and colleagues at the European Centre for Environment & Human Health at the University of Exeter Medical School. The study found people reported less mental distress and higher life satisfaction when they were living in greener areas. And this association held even after the researchers accounted for changes in participants' income, employment, marital status, physical health, and housing type.

White and colleagues were surprised by the scale of the effects of living in a greener area compared to big life events like marriage and employment. The researchers explain: "Living in an urban area with relatively high levels of green space compared to one with relatively low levels of green space was associated with a positive impact on well-being equivalent to roughly a third of the impact of being married vs. unmarried and a tenth of the impact of being employed vs. unemployed."

Head researcher Mathew White observed: "These kinds of comparisons are important for policymakers when trying to decide how to invest scarce public resources, e.g. for park development or upkeep, and figuring out what "bang' they'll get for their buck."

Findings from previous research suggested a correlation between green space and well-being, but those studies weren't able to rule out the possibility that people with higher levels of well-being simply move to greener areas. White and colleagues were able to solve that problem by using longitudinal data from the national survey; that data were collected annually from over 10,000 people between 1991 and 2008.

The new research does not prove that moving to a greener area will necessarily cause increased happiness, but it does fit with findings from experimental studies showing that short bouts of time in a green space can improve people's mood and cognitive functioning. White points out that the potential positive effects of green space for society at large might be substantial. "This research could be important for psychologists, public health officials and urban planners who are interested in learning about the effects that urbanization and city planning can have on population health and well-being."

White describes his research in this brief video from the European Centre for Environment & Human Health: www.ecehh.org/publication/would-you-be-happier-living-greener-urban-area.