Elements of Biophilic Design Increase Visual Attention in Preschoolers

Roberta Fadda

Primo

;Sara Congiu

Secondo

;Herbert Roeyers;Tricia Skoler

2023-01-01

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Abstract

Biophilic design increases attention among adults, but little is known about the influence of biophilic design on attention in childhood. We assessed visual attention in 4–5-year-old children as a function of high and low degrees of biophilic design. In the high-biophilic-design condition, the children saw four plants, which were placed on their desks. In the low-biophilic-design condition, the children saw no plants on their desks. The children viewed a series of abstract images on a computer screen while their visual attention was measured with an eye tracker. We found that the durations of the children’s first fixations were significantly higher in the high-biophilic-design compared to those in the low-biophilic-design. This study demonstrates the potential of biophilic design to increase visual attention in indoor environments. The implications of this finding for architecture and building design are discussed.