Virtual nature experiences and mindfulness practices while working from home during COVID-19: Effects on stress, focus, and creativity

Nabil Al Nahin Ch; Alberta A Ansah; Atefeh Katrahmani; Julia Burmeister; Andrew L Kun; Caitlin Mills; Orit Shaer; John D Lee

doi:10.1016/j.ijhcs.2022.102982

Virtual nature experiences and mindfulness practices while working from home during COVID-19: Effects on stress, focus, and creativity

Int J Hum Comput Stud. 2023 Mar:171:102982. doi: 10.1016/j.ijhcs.2022.102982. Epub 2022 Dec 15.

Authors

Nabil Al Nahin Ch¹, Alberta A Ansah¹, Atefeh Katrahmani², Julia Burmeister³, Andrew L Kun¹, Caitlin Mills⁴, Orit Shaer³, John D Lee²

Affiliations

¹ University of New Hampshire, Electrical and Computer Engineering, 105 Main Street, Durham, 03824, NH, USA.
² University of Wisconsin-Madison, Industrial and Systems Engineering, 702 West Johnson Street, Madison, 53715, WI, USA.
³ Wellesley College, Computer Science, 106 Central St, Wellesley, 02481, MA, USA.
⁴ University of New Hampshire, College of Liberal Arts, 105 Main Street, Durham, 03824, NH, USA.

Abstract

In this study, we focus on the impact of daily virtual nature experiences combined with mindfulness practices on remote workers' creativity, stress, and focus over an extended period (9 weeks) during the COVID-19 pandemic. Our results show a positive effect of virtual reality (VR) nature experience on increasing focus and reducing stress. When VR nature and mindfulness practices were combined, we also found an increase in convergent thinking task performance. Our findings demonstrate that 10-minute daily exposure to VR nature and mindfulness practices could compensate for some of the adverse effects of working remotely by improving some aspects of workers' well-being and creativity.

Keywords: COVID-19; Creativity; Mindfulness; Stress; VR; Working from home.