3642 - MANAGING EMOTIONS THROUGH NATURE: INTRODUCING THE NATURE SELECTION EMOTION REGULATION QUESTIONNAIRE (NS-ERQ)

Session: 3583 - EXPERIENCING, REGULATING, AND LEARNING FROM NATURE: MULTIDISCIPLINARY APPROACHES TO HUMAN-NATURE INTERACTIONS IN A CHANGING WORLD
AUTHORS:
Vitale Valeria (Urban and Environmental Psychology, Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna ~ Vienna ~ Austria) , White Mathew (Urban and Environmental Psychology, Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna ~ Vienna ~ Austria) , Bratman Gregory N (School of Environmental and Forest Sciences, University of Washington, ~ Seattle ~ United States of America) , Gross James J (Department of Psychology, Stanford University ~ Stanford ~ United States of America) , Preece David A (Department of Psychology, Stanford University ~ Stanford ~ United States of America) , Bonaiuto Marino (Department of Psychology of Developmental and Socialization Processes, Sapienza University of Rome ~ Rome ~ Italy)
Abstract text:
Introduction. Emotion regulation (ER) takes many forms. One of the most intriguing is situation selection, which refers to selecting the situations we're exposed to in order to influence our emotions. Despite its importance, surprisingly little is known about this.
Purpose. This work examines an important type of situation selection, namely location selection - emphasizing the deliberate choice of environmental settings, with a particular focus in selecting nature experiences, in order to influence emotional states. To measure this process, a new self-report scale - the Nature Selection Emotion Regulation Questionnaire (NS-ERQ) - was validated across four studies.
Methods & Results. In the first study (N = 292), the English version of the scale was developed with an initial set of 20 items. Items were generated based on Russell's Circumplex Model of Affect (1980), reflecting the four primary dimensions of affect defined by valence and arousal. Exploratory factor analysis led to a refined 12-item scale, organized into a two-factor structure: restoration and revitalization. The second study (N = 302) tested the 12-item scale's reliability, convergent, and discriminant validity, as well as test-retest reliability and predictive validity through a follow-up survey (N = 125). The third study (N = 308) adapted the scale for Italian speakers, confirming the two-factor structure as well as its reliability and validity. Furthermore, the scale demonstrated measurement invariance across English and Italian versions. The fourth study (N = 200) developed an adapted shortened Italian version of the scale to explore its practical application by evaluating specific environmental stimuli (i.e., images) in an experimental study, demonstrating its versatility in assessing the emotional impact of environments.
Conclusions. Overall, these findings establish the NS-ERQ as a psychometrically sound instrument for assessing how individuals choose to visit nature for ER, providing a new framework for understanding the role of selecting environmental context in ER.