Level of self-control linked to environment
What should you do after a difficult day at work? Many people would
take a peaceful walk in nature, but this may not be a wise choice for
everyone.
A Journal of Consumer Psychology study found evidence that people who
are more prone to anxiety should instead take a walk in a busy, urban
environment.
"Previous literature says that natural environments tend to restore
cognitive abilities better than urban environments, but we questioned
whether this one-sided perspective was accurate," says lead author Kevin
Newman, an assistant professor at Providence College in Rhode Island.
The researchers started by asking participants to perform tasks that
drained them mentally, such as writing sentences without using the
letters "A" or "N."
Then
participants answered questions that revealed their level of
neuroticism, such as whether they were a worrier, irritable, highly
strung or experienced moods that often go up and down. Then all the
subjects performed tasks that exposed them to words or pictures
associated with either a natural or urban environment.
Surprisingly, the results revealed that people with neurotic
personalities had more success restoring their cognitive abilities after
they viewed words related to a busy urban environment. The
nature-related words, however, were more beneficial for people who were
not generally neurotic. The researchers also discovered that neurotic
people may not necessarily have to go to a busy urban setting to restore
themselves mentally.
In fact, nature could provide frenetic, stressful cues when the
participants were exposed to words like "bear," "cliff" and "thunder."
Similarly, people low in neuroticism may not need to seek out nature to
revive themselves mentally. Cues from a calm place in a busy city--such
as a bookstore or library--restored participants in this category.
"People tended to do better in environments that fit with their
personality," Newman says. "Imagine someone with a neurotic personality
like Woody Allen. If you put him in a forest it could be very
off-putting rather than rejuvenating." The researchers also discovered
that restoring the mind was tied to one's ability to exert self-control.
This correlation between environment and self-control could have
implications related to health outcomes, Newman says. People may make
healthier food choices if they choose environments that match their
personality type, he explains.
One of his experiments lends support to this theory. Neurotic
participants had more financial discipline when they viewed safari
vacation pictures and descriptions that matched their personality type.
They were more likely to stick to a limited vacation budget when they
saw safari photos with lions gnashing teeth and rhinos charging, but
this was not the case when they viewed photos with leopards sleeping and
rhinos grazing peacefully. The findings could influence the way
companies design retail and online spaces or offer products. If a
product or store tends to attract a certain personality type, then the
company may want to design the environment to be compatible with
consumers.
An experiential product, such as a cruise, may want to offer
activities that appeal to both neurotic and non-neurotic passengers,
such as zip-lining or time on the beach, Newman says.
The different environmental needs of varying personality types may be
increasingly relevant because studies show that Americans have shifted
towards higher levels of neuroticism in recent decades, Newman says.
- MNT
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