CLICK HERE: THE INFLUENCE OF CANDIDATES’ WEBSITES IN THE 2016 PRESIDENTIAL NOMINATION CONTEST

This project seeks to answer the question: How did the websites of Republican presidential candidates change over time in order to frame the overall message a candidate is sending potential voters? Subsequently, what information cues or shortcuts that are described by Popkin in The Reasoning Voter were being utilized to target voters in their decision making process? The hypothesis was that Republican candidate websites that employed competitive messages on hot button issues attracted low information, partisan voters, resulting in more traffic on their websites and higher standings in the polls. The data was compiled through a content analysis of the websites of five Republicans who had announced their candidacy for president by September 2016. The main section that was the focus of this research is each candidate’s home pages. The methodology followed that of Haynes et al. (2002) who evaluated candidate press releases, dividing the messages into substantive, competitive, and informative. The variables examined included issues, candidate history/background, campaign announcements, attacks, and the horse race. GOP candidate standings was determined by public opinion data reported by Real Clear Politics. Traffic to each website over the indicated time span was determined through the use of Alexa.com. Google Trends was also consulted to see how much traffic was being funneled to a particular website over the course of this research

Developing a Connection to Nature: The Role of Pet Ownership in Childhood

Connection to nature is associated with a range of benefits to well-being in both childhood and adulthood. Childhood experiences seem to play a big role in how adult nature connection develops. Among the many predictors of higher connection to nature, relationships with animals, including pets, likely play an important role in facilitating feelings of closeness with nature. In this paper we present two survey studies, one of children (n = 64, age = 6–16 years) and one of adults (n = 356, age = 18–80 years). Our aim was to find out if children who own pets have a higher level of connection to nature, as well as whether adults who owned pets in childhood have higher mean levels of connection to nature in adulthood than those who did not own pets. We also examined the relationship that level of engagement with childhood pets might have with nature connection. We did not find a significant difference in mean levels of connection to nature in either children or adults who own(ed) pets in childhood compared to those who did not. For adults, level of engagement with a childhood pet was associated with later nature connection; however, this relationship was not significant in children. These findings suggest that merely owning a pet in childhood might not be enough to encourage a strong connection to nature; rather, in line with the pets as ambassadors theory, active engagement and involvement in the care of childhood pets could be most important in facilitating this relationship. To build relationships with nature during formative childhood years, children could be encouraged to engage with and care for household pets

The messy middle:An exploratory study of adolescent environmentalists in North Carolina

Today’s adolescents have grown up with technology as a main element in their lives and are particularly susceptible to experiencing mental health challenges, so-called nature-deficit disorder, and eco-anxiety around the climate crisis. This unique developmental context may necessitate a reconceptualising of adolescents’ relationships with the environment including their connection to nature. We identified nine adolescents from North Carolina who had high levels of connection to nature and participated in environmental education programs. Using reflexive thematic analysis of data gathered through semi-structured interviews, we developed three themes to reflect how this group of US-based adolescents experience their connection to nature: optimism and limitations related to individual actions; environmentalism as more than a phase; and complex relationships (with nature, environmentalism, and technology). This exploratory study has prompted us to reflect upon how traditional conceptualisations of core concepts in the field of environmental education may require more nuance in the 21st century

Nature connection in adulthood:The role of childhood nature experiences

1) Context: Nature connection describes our relationship with the rest of the natural world. Promoting nature connection in children and adults has been identified as a worthwhile focus for education and public health, given the positive associations between nature connection, wellbeing and pro-environmental behaviours. Prior research has looked at activities that promote an individual’s connection to nature, reporting that a variety of interventions can be effective. Particular emphasis has been placed on positive childhood nature experiences due to their effects on adult nature connection. Research from varied places such as New Zealand, Australia, the USA and Brazil suggest that an individual’s childhood nature experiences can play a positive role on their adult connection to nature. 2) Approach: This paper is the first of its kind to explore the associations between childhood nature activities, both their type and frequency, and adult nature connection in a Greek sample (n=401). We gathered the perspectives of Greek-speaking adults using quantitative measures in an online survey.3) Results: Our results suggest that, in line with previous research, childhood nature experiences were significantly and positively correlated with adult nature connectedness. However, contrary to previous research, analysis suggested that adult nature experiences did not mediate the relationship between childhood nature experience and adult nature connection. Age was positively correlated with less structured childhood nature experiences such that older adults were more likely to have participated in unstructured outdoor activities like flower picking and general alone time outside during childhood. 4) Synthesis and applications: Capturing retrospective self-reports on the frequency and type of childhood nature experiences in this Greek sample helps us understand how these experiences may predict engagement and relationships with nature in adulthood. In turn, these findings inform context-specific recommendations for encouraging nature contact in childhood. For instance, this may have implications for nature-based learning in Greece, as well as the provision of urban green and blue spaces

COVID-19 Mortality in New York City across Neighborhoods by Race, Ethnicity, and Nativity Status

New York City has lost more lives from COVID-19 than any other American city. Our paper examines variation in COVID-19 deaths across neighborhoods as it relates to the spatial variation in the racial, ethnic, and nativity-status composition of neighborhoods. This topic has received little scholarly attention and is imperative to explore, given the absence of racial and ethnic specific COVID-19 mortality rates by neighborhood. New York City is a racially and ethnically segregated city and a longstanding destination of immigrants, making some neighborhoods more susceptible to greater levels of COVID-19 mortality than others. Using ZCTA-level data on COVID-19 deaths and demographic data from the American Community Survey, our mapping analysis reveals that a racial, ethnic, and nativity-status hierarchy exists in the geographic distribution of COVID-19 mortality. Implications of these findings are discussed as they relate to residential segregation and persistent spatial inequalities faced by communities of color

Respite and connection:Autistic adults' reflections upon nature and well-being during the Covid-19 pandemic

The Covid-19 pandemic and associated lockdowns provided opportunities to engage and reconnect with nature, with many people noting associated benefits to well-being. Research from the pandemic period has largely focused on the way neurotypical or general populations experienced nature; less is known about how autistic people used nature to support well-being during this time. In this qualitative survey study of 127 autistic adults in the United Kingdom, we used reflexive thematic analysis of text box responses to develop two themes: respite in nature and connecting amid widespread disconnection. For some autistic adults during the pandemic, nature provided physical distance from others or from crowded homes, enabling them to use nature to experience relief from stress. In addition, some participants felt more psychologically connected to nature itself during the pandemic, while for others, nature served as a way of connecting with others during a potentially isolating time. These findings have implications for autistic people and their families and carers who may want to seek out nature-based activities to support well-being in the wake of the pandemic

Developing a Connection to Nature: The Role of Pet Ownership in Childhood

Alexia Barrable - ORCID: 0000-0002-5352-8330 https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5352-8330inpressinpres

Nature connection in adulthood: The role of childhood nature experiences

Alexia Barrable - ORCID: 0000-0002-5352-8330 https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5352-83301) Context: Nature connection describes our relationship with the rest of the natural world. Promoting nature connection in children and adults has been identified as a worthwhile focus for education and public health, given the positive associations between nature connection, wellbeing and pro-environmental behaviours. Prior research has looked at activities that promote an individual’s connection to nature, reporting that a variety of interventions can be effective. Particular emphasis has been placed on positive childhood nature experiences due to their effects on adult nature connection. Research from varied places such as New Zealand, Australia, the USA and Brazil suggest that an individual’s childhood nature experiences can play a positive role on their adult connection to nature. 2) Approach: This paper is the first of its kind to explore the associations between childhood nature activities, both their type and frequency, and adult nature connection in a Greek sample (n=401). We gathered the perspectives of Greek-speaking adults using quantitative measures in an online survey. 3) Results: Our results suggest that, in line with previous research, childhood nature experiences were significantly and positively correlated with adult nature connectedness. However, contrary to previous research, analysis suggested that adult nature experiences did not mediate the relationship between childhood nature experience and adult nature connection. Age was positively correlated with less structured childhood nature experiences such that older adults were more likely to have participated in unstructured outdoor activities like flower picking and general alone time outside during childhood. 4) Synthesis and applications: Capturing retrospective self-reports on the frequency and type of childhood nature experiences in this Greek sample helps us understand how these experiences may predict engagement and relationships with nature in adulthood. In turn, these findings inform context-specific recommendations for encouraging nature contact in childhood. For instance, this may have implications for nature-based learning in Greece, as well as the provision of urban green and blue spaces.inpressinpres

Understanding changes to children's connection to nature during the COVID‐19 pandemic and implications for child well‐being

Abstract: While psychological connection to nature is known to be associated with both pro‐environmental behaviours and well‐being, there is an urgent need to extend this research to consider impacts from the COVID‐19 lockdown period. Examining whether children's connection to nature changed during this period, identifying the drivers of these changes and determining the links between connection to nature and child well‐being can each serve to guide post‐lockdown initiatives to promote children's connection to nature. Three findings emerged from this UK sample of 376 families with young children. First, nearly two thirds of parents reported a change (most typically, an increase) in their child's connection to nature. Explanations for this increase included having more time, increased enjoyment of nature and increased awareness or interest in nature. Second, a third of children whose connection to nature decreased during the pandemic displayed increased problems of well‐being—manifest as either ‘acting out’ (externalising problems) or sadness/anxiety (internalising problems). Third, an increase in connection to nature during the pandemic was more evident for children from affluent families than for their less affluent peers. While connecting to nature may be an effective means of addressing child problems of well‐being, the divergent findings for children from different family backgrounds indicate that efforts to enhance connection to nature should focus on the barriers experienced by children from less affluent families. A free Plain Language Summary can be found within the Supporting Information of this article

Nature connection and wellbeing in children and adolescents: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Alexia Barrable - ORCID: 0000-0002-5352-8330 https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5352-8330Nature connection (also referred to as nature connectedness, connectedness to nature connection to nature, or nature relatedness) describes a positive relationship between humans and the natural world, with various benefits for both nature and humans. The latter include a small but robust positive correlation of nature connection with various types of wellbeing and flourishing. However, this correlation has been investigated meta-analytically in adults only; no meta-analysis to-date has investigated the relationship between nature connection and wellbeing in children and adolescents. This is the aim of the present study. We undertook searches through four databases (Google Scholar, ERIC, PsycInfo and Scopus). The criteria were (i) the mean age of participants is below 18, with no restrictions on sex or ethnicity and that they were drawn from the general population; (ii) that there were at least one explicit, non-dichotomised measure for nature connection and one for wellbeing and (iii) that there were adequate data reported so that we could record or compute the correlation coefficient between the main variables. Our systematic review identified twelve studies (k = 12) that fulfilled the criteria and could be included in the meta-analysis. The total sample (n = 30,075) included children and adolescents aged four to 18. An overall moderate significant effect was found (r = .31, 95% CI = .22-.41) for the relationship between nature connection and wellbeing in children and adolescents, which is comparable but slightly higher than the effect found in previous meta-analyses focused on adults.inpressinpres