Mending the Human-Nature Relationship Through Therapy

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Issue Date
2016-12
Authors
Naoufal, Ana Claudia
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Abstract
In the last few decades, there has been an increase in literature and research on the importance of nature in psychotherapy due to the realization of its crucial role in human development and well-being. This thesis discusses the relevance of using nature as part of therapy and reveals the positive impact of incorporating nature into counselling practices. It will also look at research on the effects that the growing disconnection from nature is having in children, a concept recently labeled as Nature-Deficit Disorder (NDD). Throughout this thesis we will explore the negative impact that the growing disconnection between human beings and nature has on both. In the chapters that follow nature-focused healing perspectives and practices will be presented as well as taking a closer look into NDD. A discussion on the literature emphasizes the importance of counsellors and psychotherapists maintaining openness in developing strategies to incorporate nature into their work with clients inspired by the philosophy of echopsychology. This results in eco-friendly therapy models such as ecotherapy and nature therapy. This thesis emphasizes the importance of incorporating nature into counseling and psychotherapy, providing examples of interventions that are inspired by the intuitive knowledge that nature heals while backing it up with the research aimed at proving this.
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Keywords
nature therapy , nature deficit disorder , ecotherapy
License
Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 United States , openAccess
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