This Article Full Text (PDF) All Versions of this Article: 1087054708323000v1 12/5/402    most recent References Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Add to Saved Citations Download to citation manager Request Permissions Request Reprints Add to My Marked Citations Citing Articles Citing Articles via Google Scholar Citing Articles via Scopus Google Scholar Articles by Faber Taylor, A. Articles by Kuo, F. E. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Faber Taylor, A. Articles by Kuo, F. E. Social Bookmarking                         What's this?

Children With Attention Deficits Concentrate Better After Walk in the Park

University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, afabrtay{at}illinois.edu

Frances E. Kuo

University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign

Objective: In the general population, attention is reliably enhanced after exposure to certain physical environments, particularly natural environments. This study examined the impacts of environments on attention in children with ADHD. Method: In this within subjects design, each participant experienced each of three treatments (environments) in single blind controlled trials. Seventeen children 7 to12 years old professionally diagnosed with ADHD experienced each of three environments—a city park and two other well-kept urban settings—via individually guided 20-minute walks. Environments were experienced 1 week apart, with randomized assignment to treatment order. After each walk, concentration was measured using Digit Span Backwards. Results: Children with ADHD concentrated better after the walk in the park than after the downtown walk (p = .0229) or the neighborhood walk (p = .0072). Effect sizes were substantial (Cohen's d =.52 and .77, respectively) and comparable to those reported for recent formulations of methylphenidate. Conclusion: Twenty minutes in a park setting was sufficient to elevate attention performance relative to the same amount of time in other settings. These findings indicate that environments can enhance attention not only in the general population but also in ADHD populations. "Doses of nature" might serve as a safe, inexpensive, widely accessible new tool in the tool kit for managing ADHD symptoms. (J. of Att. Dis. 2009; 12(5) 402-409)

Key Words: children • attention • physical environment • symptom management

This version was published on March 1, 2009

Journal of Attention Disorders, Vol. 12, No. 5, 402-409 (2009)
DOI: 10.1177/1087054708323000


CiteULike    Complore    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    Twitter    What's this?