Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-dlnhk Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-29T03:51:49.525Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Exploring the influence of wilderness on conscious awareness

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  18 June 2021

Oli Purnell*
Affiliation:
Swansea University Medical School
Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Core share and HTML view are not available for this content. However, as you have access to this content, a full PDF is available via the ‘Save PDF’ action button.
Aims

This study examined what effect wilderness has on our conscious awareness, and by extension of that meta-cognition; our physical, mental and spiritual health.

Background
Method

It reviews available scientific and artistic literature and integrates this with interviews in order to generate original grounded theory.

Result

It was found that intensity of wilderness experience varied proportionally with four mediators; Challenge, Immersion, Beauty and Time. With these maximised, experiences broadly within four themes occurred; Increased Awareness, Confidence, Perspective and Connectedness. When sufficiently intense, these four experiences amalgamated to elicit what Maslow described as 'Peak Experience'.

Conclusion

As such, this thesis unexpectedly provides a pragmatic recipie towards peak experience, and a map of one's potential psychological journey, in the context of wilderness.

Type
Research
Creative Commons
Creative Common License - CCCreative Common License - BY
This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution licence (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s), 2021. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of the Royal College of Psychiatrists
Submit a response

eLetters

No eLetters have been published for this article.