Thoreau and the Benefits of Nature for Mental Health

In our age of AI and virtual reality, the artificial is fast becoming central to our experience. Algorithms are driving this new reality. It makes sense to think of this period of human history as different from the “modern” and “postmodern” periods that have come before. It is what I have referred to as the “algomodern” age. A key feature of this reality is that daily life is becoming ever more complex, and one of the most pressing problems we face is information overload. This can strain our mental health and well-being, and can do so without our even noticing what is happening. One promising place to begin if we are looking for effective solutions is with Henry David Thoreau’s philosophy, which advocates for the restorative effects of minimalism and of connecting to the natural world.

The Internet Data Center estimates that the size of the global datasphere is 163 zettabytes, or 1 trillion gigabytes. Its size is growing rapidly: It is now 10 times as big as it was in 2016, when it was 16.1 ZB.

Information overload occurs when we are in an overburdened state in which we feel overwhelmed because our capacities for information processing do not meet the information processing requirements (Graf & Antoni, 2021).

There are similarities between our own period of history and Henry David Thoreau’s. His book Walden was published in the summer of 1854. He inhabited a modern world that was unfolding following the Industrial Revolution. His philosophy was partly an attempt to make sense of life in the wake of the inventions of his time. To Thoreau, such technologies were of questionable value:

there is an illusion about them; there is not always a positive advance. The devil goes on exacting compound interest to the last for his early share and numerous succeeding investments in them. Our inventions are wont to be pretty toys, which distract our attention from serious things…. We are in great haste to construct a magnetic telegraph from Maine to Texas; but Maine and Texas, it may be, have nothing important to communicate.

Thoreau and the American transcendentalists were committed advocates of a philosophy of life centering around the natural. Thoreau recounts his experience of leaving city life behind, building his cabin in the woods, and immersing himself in nature: “I go and come with a strange liberty in Nature, a part of herself.” “Every morning,” he writes, “was a cheerful invitation to make my life of equal simplicity, and I may say innocence, with Nature herself.”

The rate of technological change and growth of information is much faster now than in the 19th century. And we are grappling with technologies, in areas such as AI, virtual reality, genetics and human enhancement, and nanotechnology, that would have been unimaginable to Thoreau. It makes more sense today than ever to look to the benefits of nature for our balance and emotional well-being.

Researchers have been exploring these benefits, and psychological studies have lent support to the beneficial effects of nature.

One recent study (Chang et al., 2024) focused on an interesting research question: While we are spending time in natural environments, does it matter that we feel a sense of connection to the nature that surrounds us?

To measure connection to nature, the researchers presented participants with items from the Nature Relatedness Scale (Nisbet et al., 2009). This psychological scale includes statements like “I enjoy being outdoors, even in unpleasant weather” and “I take notice of wildlife wherever I am.” (With his deep sense of connection to nature, Thoreau would certainly have strongly endorsed both of these statements.)

The researchers found that the mental health benefit of visits to public green spaces varied depending on a person’s connection to nature. Those with stronger connections to nature experienced reductions in stress and anxiety through their green space visits. But those with weaker connections to nature experienced little reduction in stress and anxiety, even if they visited green spaces frequently.

In spite of the vast technological differences between Thoreau’s age and our own, his insights have held up remarkably well. His philosophy of life was developed through his firsthand experience of living in harmony with nature. If we want to experience emotional benefits from nature, it is important to cultivate our sense of connection to nature. To do this, there is no better place to begin than with Thoreau’s timeless vision.