赤腳觸覺體驗之生心理效益：童年自然接觸與自然連結之影響

Abstract

隨著都市化進程加速與疫情後生活型態改變，人們日常活動逐漸轉向室內化與高度人工化，與自然環境直接接觸的機會亦隨之降低。過去研究指出，自然環境具有促進心理恢復與壓力調節之效果，並能提升個體之自然連結感與情緒福祉。然而，現有研究多著重於視覺或整體自然暴露，較少探討身體直接接觸自然介質所形成的觸覺經驗。觸覺作為人類重要的感官系統，在身體與環境互動中扮演關鍵角色，其中赤腳接觸自然鋪面可透過足底直接感受材質之壓力、溫度與粗糙度差異，進而可能影響個體之心理與生理狀態；而童年自然接觸經驗亦可能形塑個體與自然之情感連結，並影響成年後自然接觸所引發之反應。 本研究旨在探討赤腳接觸自然鋪面對大專生之生心理效益，並比較草地與土壤兩種自然鋪面之反應差異，以及童年自然接觸經驗與自然連結感所扮演之角色。研究以 45 位大學生為對象，採重複測量設計，受試者於實驗前完成基本資料及自然連結感、正負向情緒與狀態焦慮等心理問卷，並接受血壓與腦波測量，隨後分別赤腳接觸草地與土壤，並於接觸後再次測量相關指標。 研究結果顯示，受試者在赤腳接觸自然鋪面後，自然連結感與正向情緒提升，負向情緒與狀態焦慮下降，顯示短時間赤腳接觸可能具有即時心理效益。生理反應方面，血壓整體未呈現明顯變化，腦波則在多數頻段呈下降趨勢。不同鋪面比較結果顯示，草地對自然連結感之提升較為明顯，土壤則在部分生理反應上呈現較大變化。童年自然接觸經驗較高者，其前測自然連結感亦較高，但與赤腳接觸後各項變化量之關聯相對有限；相較之下，赤腳接觸後自然連結感提升較多者，也較容易伴隨正向情緒增加與焦慮下降。本研究結果支持赤腳接觸自然鋪面可作為具即時心理效益之自然互動方式，並可為未來景觀規劃與多感官自然體驗設計提供參考。

With the acceleration of urbanization and changes in lifestyles after the COVID-19 pandemic, people’s daily activities have gradually shifted toward indoor and highly artificial environments, thereby reducing opportunities for direct contact with nature. Previous studies have indicated that natural environments can promote psychological restoration and stress regulation, as well as enhance individuals’ nature connectedness and emotional well-being. However, existing research has mainly focused on visual exposure or overall environmental exposure, while relatively limited attention has been paid to tactile experiences formed through direct bodily contact with natural materials. As an important sensory modality, touch plays a key role in the interaction between the body and the environment. Barefoot contact with natural ground surfaces allows individuals to directly perceive differences in pressure, temperature, and roughness through the soles of the feet, which may further influence psychological and physiological states. In addition, childhood nature experiences may shape individuals’ emotional connection with nature; however, whether such experiences affect the psychophysiological benefits induced by nature contact in adulthood remains to be further clarified. This study aims to examine the psychophysiological benefits of barefoot contact with natural ground surfaces among college students, compare the responses induced by two types of natural surfaces, namely grass and soil, and explore the roles of childhood nature experiences and nature connectedness in these responses. A total of 45 college students participated in this study, which employed a repeated-measures design. Before the experiment, participants provided demographic information and completed psychological questionnaires assessing connectedness to nature, positive and negative affect, and state anxiety, followed by blood pressure and electroencephalography measurements. They then completed barefoot-contact trials on grass and soil, with the relevant measures repeated after each condition. The results showed that after barefoot contact with natural ground surfaces, participants’ nature connectedness and positive affect increased, whereas negative affect and state anxiety decreased, suggesting that short-term barefoot contact may provide immediate psychological benefits. Regarding physiological responses, blood pressure did not show marked overall changes, while brainwave activity showed a decreasing trend across most frequency bands. Comparisons between the two surface types indicated that grass was associated with a more evident increase in nature connectedness, whereas soil showed greater changes in certain physiological responses. Participants with more childhood nature experiences also tended to have higher baseline nature connectedness, but the associations between childhood nature experiences and post-contact changes were relatively limited. In contrast, greater increases in nature connectedness after barefoot contact were more likely to be accompanied by increased positive affect and reduced anxiety. The findings support barefoot contact with natural ground surfaces as a form of nature interaction with immediate psychological benefits, and may provide practical implications for future landscape planning and multisensory nature experience design.