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Item type:Publication, When nature sounds like home: Mental wellbeing effects of acoustic diversity differ for local and non-local forest soundscapes(Elsevier BV, 2026-05-01)Biodiversity can foster mental well-being. Little is known, however, about mental well-being effects of acoustic diversity, and relationships between soundscapes and a person's sense of place. To test this, we conducted an experimental study with 195 students residing in Germany, who listened to two forest soundscapes with low or high vocalising animal richness (actual acoustic diversity). As a manipulation of a sense of place, recordings were either from local, temperate forests or non-local tropical forests. Although actual acoustic diversity was correlated with perceived animal richness and overall acoustic complexity, well-being responses diverged. Higher objective animal richness elicited greater awe when recordings came from familiar temperate forests. In contrast, perceived animal richness was associated with more favourable affect—higher affect balance and reduced negative emotion — and greater subjective attention. Conversely, perceived overall acoustic diversity was negatively associated with affect balance and positive emotion, suggesting that complexity that is not interpreted as wildlife richness may impede comfort. Recordings from local (temperate) forests were more familiar and pleasant to participants compared to non-local (tropical) forest recordings. Listening to local forest soundscapes further resulted in greater feelings of awe, and they were perceived as more restorative. Overall, forest soundscapes with higher animal species richness were associated with greater mental well-being. Participants also showed greater well-being responses for local soundscapes probably through feeling more attached to familiar environments. These findings indicate that acoustic diversity is not uniformly beneficial as its effects depend on interpretation and environmental familiarity. We highlight the need to consider place-based meaning and perceptual framing when assessing the psychological benefits of natural soundscapes. We recommend managing forests to provide sufficient niches for a variety of vocalising animal species. Conservation of local species communities may thereby foster both biodiversity and human mental health.2 - Some of the metrics are blocked by yourconsent settings
Item type:Publication, Forest biodiversity and structure modulate human health benefits and risks(Nature Portfolio, 2025-05-01)The benefits and risks of forests to human health are widely recognized. Yet, variation across forest types and their ecological characteristics driving health effects remain underexplored. Based on a continental-scale, interdisciplinary empirical database from 164 European forest stands, we constructed a Bayesian Belief Network to quantify seven causal pathways relating distinct forest types to physical and mental health. These forest–health pathways included mental well-being via visual or auditory stimuli, thermal comfort, polyphenol content of medicinal plants, mushrooms and nutrition, air quality, and ticks and Lyme disease. Results show that forests consistently provide net health benefits regardless of their ecological characteristics. Forest canopy density and tree species diversity emerge as key drivers, but their effect size and directionality are strongly pathway-dependent. Changes in forest canopy density can generate trade-offs. For example, forests optimized for heat buffering and air pollution mitigation may compromise medicinal plant yield and enhance Lyme disease prevalence. Tree diversity effects were weaker but more uniformly positive. Therefore, forest management should account for such trade-offs to tailor forest biodiversity and functioning to local public health priorities.2