Effect of Environment on the Central and Peripheral Nervous System
For patients and families
In plain language
An automatic summary of structured registry data. It is an orientation aid, not a substitute for the official protocol or a physician assessment.
- What is being studied
- The protocol lists: Built environment, Natural environment.
- Who it may be relevant to
- Registry conditions: Rumination. Basic parameters: from 18 years · All.
- What needs checking
- Age, condition and sex are only basic indicators. Prior treatment, laboratory values and other mandatory requirements appear in the eligibility criteria below.
- Where it takes place
- United States
- Next step
- Save the trial, show it to the treating physician, and confirm current recruitment with the study center. Costs, documents and travel →
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Overview
The main goal of this study is to understand how different environments influence both mental responses, like overthinking (rumination), and physical reactions, such as heart rate and blood pressure, after a challenging task.
Detailed description
This study aims to explore the restorative effects of nature exposure on rumination- a mental process that affects attention-and cardiovascular responses to a challenging task. A total of 95 participants will be randomly assigned to either a built or natural environment. Each participant will take part in a 2.5-hour session. Initially, an electrocardiogram (ECG) will be attached to measure heart activity. Participants will then engage in a 30-minute task designed to immerse them in their assigned environment (the ABC engagement task). Following this, they will have a 10-minute period of quiet relaxation to establish baseline cardiovascular measures. After baseline, participants will complete a challenging task (the Remote Associates Test (RAT)), which is designed to induce sympathetic arousal. Afterward, they will rest quietly for another 10 minutes to monitor cardiovascular recovery. Finally, participants will complete post-task surveys through Qualtrics, assessing their state of rumination, perceived difficulty of the task, effort levels, and expectations of success.
Interventions
- Other Built environment
Participants will complete the study session at a University student center. - Other Natural environment
Participants will complete the study session in a nature trail.
Primary outcome measures
- Respiratory Sinus Arrhythmia (RSA) [Time frame: Respiratory sinus arrhythmia will be measured during a baseline (20 minutes), challenging task (19 minutes) and the recovery period (10 minutes).]
- Blood pressure [Time frame: Systolic (SBP) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) will be measured during a baseline (20 minutes), challenging task (19 minutes), and recovery period (10 minutes).]
- Remote Associates Test (RAT) [Time frame: Participants will complete the RAT task for 19 minutes (44 trials).]
Eligibility criteria
Inclusion criteria
- Individuals 18 years of age or older.
Exclusion criteria
- Individuals with a history of cardiovascular disease or disorders, those who are pregnant, or are taking medications which may alter/affect cardiovascular function.
Criteria are shown verbatim from the registry (in English). Final eligibility is always assessed by the study center.
Healthy volunteers: Yes
Study design
- Allocation
- Randomized
- Model
- Parallel assignment
- Masking
- Open label
- Primary purpose
- Basic science
Study locations
United States · 1 center
- University of South Florida — Tampa
Identifiers
NCT: NCT06778356 · STUDY007343