Coping with add - The surprising connection to green play settings

Attention Restoration Theory suggests that contact with nature supports att entional functioning, and a number of studies have found contact with every day nature to be related to attention in adults. Is contact with everyday n ature also related to the attentional functioning of children? This questio n was addressed through a study focusing on children with Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD). This study examined the relationship between children's na ture exposure through leisure activities and their attentional functioning using both within- and between-subjects comparisons. Parents were surveyed regarding their child's attentional functioning after activities in several settings. Results indicate that children function better than usual after activities in green settings and that the "greener" a child's play area, th e less severe his or her attention deficit symptoms. Thus, contact with nat ure may support attentional functioning in a population of children who des perately need attentional support.