Peer-reviewed researchEONZ research brief
Outdoor school-based nature education programs improve social life and vitality: evidence from a six-wave longitudinal study on Italian secondary school students
In a study of 203 Italian students, outdoor programme participation was linked to early gains in social identity and civic engagement, but later effects were inconsistent.
What's new
This study followed 203 students across six measurement waves, comparing 113 students in school-specific outdoor nature programmes with 90 controls. Programme participation was associated with early increases in social identity and civic engagement. Social identity predicted engagement, which in turn predicted vitality. The indirect programme effect was significant only during the initial phase, and later intervention effects were inconsistent.
Why it matters in Aotearoa
Belonging, collective participation and meaningful action may be mechanisms connecting outdoor learning with wellbeing. This supports evaluating programme quality and social processes and not just attendance or time outdoors. The inconsistent later effects caution against claims of uniform benefit.
Putting it into practice
Evaluate the social side of your programmes, such as belonging and shared participation, as well as how often students go outdoors.
How strong is the evidence
Peer-reviewed longitudinal study with 203 students and a control group, in Italy. Later effects were inconsistent, so it is not strong evidence of lasting causal effects.
What to read
The abstract, results, discussion and limitations