Do home gardeners have better well-being?

• Main Author: Lim, Alissa Gale E.
• Format: text
• Language: English
• Published: Animo Repository 2023
• Subjects: Gardeners; Mental health; Clinical Psychology
• Online Access: https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/etdm_psych/54; https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/context/etdm_psych/article/1050/viewcontent/2023_Lim_Do_Home_Gardeners_Have_Better_Well_being_Full_text.pdf
• Institution: De La Salle University

The rise in home gardeners during the COVID-19 pandemic corroborated existing literature’s findings on the mental health benefits of this nature-based leisure activity. However, there is limited evidence that simultaneously investigates the relationship of positive and negative mental health with home gardening, particularly outside of the COVID-19 pandemic and within the Philippine context. Building on the Biophilia Theory and Bidimensional Model of Mental Health, this paper focuses on examining the differences between the four chosen mental health indicators, particularly, stress, depression, anxiety, and well-being, based on engagement in home gardening after controlling for age. A total of 77 home gardeners and 119 non-gardeners across the Philippines answered a questionnaire measuring the said constructs. The results revealed that home gardeners tend to experience higher well-being compared to non-gardeners. Meanwhile, no significant associations were found between home gardening and stress, depression, and anxiety. Notably, these three negative mental health indicators were significantly linked to age, which was the chosen covariate. The results were further discussed in relation to the theoretical frameworks used in the study as well as the factors that may have influenced the findings in the study. Implications to related research and the mental health care field were also outlined.