Nature Benefits and Smartphone Interactions: Exploring the Field and Learning from Students in London

How should we study the relationship between smartphone use and nature benefits? Smartphones are an increasingly ubiquitous feature of modern life. But what do they mean for the likelihood of people deriving benefits from spending time in outdoor nature? Some see them as a problem (people could really benefit if only they’d put down their phones). Others are optimistic about the opportunities (perhaps smartphones could be a useful tool in the promotion of social wellbeing). This presentation reflects on how studies have explored this connection to date. In so doing, the aim is partly to explore how other approaches could usefully enrich this developing field of work. More specifically, I argue for a fuller focus on cultural change as it is actively negotiated by a range of social groups.

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Speaker

Russell Hitchings

Department of Geography, University College London (UCL)

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Russell Hitchings is an Associate Professor in the Department of Geography at University College London, UK. He has studied everyday life in a variety of contexts around the world and has published widely on qualitative methods, energy consumption, climate adaptation and nature experience.