The Restorative Role of Green Space at Knowledge-Sector Workplaces

Recent years have seen a proliferation of research into the role of greenspace in human health. A significant amount of this has focused on the psychological ‘restorative’ benefits of contact with natural environments (including viewing nature from indoors and green exercise). Relatively few studies have addressed the role of these greenspace functions in the context of the workplace environment. This is perhaps surprising given that it is at work that many of us experience the greatest stress and mental demands – and where many people spend a significant amount of their time. The few studies that have taken place suggest links between contact with nature and measures of physical and mental health, job satisfaction, task performance, moods and social interactions, and have pointed to the role of greenspace in buffering the negative effects of work stress in general (Kaplan, 1993; Leather et al., 1998, Stigsdotter, 2003; Hartig et al., 2006; Kweon et al., 2008). These studies of the restorative benefits of workplace greenspace have for the most part focused on effects of viewing nature through office windows: there has been little attention directed towards the potential benefits of spending time in green environments during the workday.This paper presents results from an ongoing PhD project investigating the potential benefits to knowledge-sector workers from exposure to green space in Science Park workplaces in Scotland. A significant proportion of new commercial property development now occurs at urban-fringe business sites like Science Parks, where low density development and a high quality green environment are prioritised. There is clearly a great deal of scope in these workplaces for employees to benefit from the restorative effects of nature by both taking breaks outdoors and through access to window views of green space from inside buildings. Furthermore, employees in Science Parks may be a population which experiences especially high drains on their cogniti