Facilitating the development of nature connectedness

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dc.contributor.advisorFeront, Cecileen_ZA
dc.contributor.advisorHamann, Maikeen_ZA
dc.contributor.authorGeytenbeek, Michaelaen_ZA
dc.contributor.otherStellenbosch University. Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences. Centre for Sustainability Transition. en_ZA
dc.date.accessioned2023-02-07T14:06:19Z
dc.date.accessioned2023-05-18T06:58:12Z
dc.date.available2023-02-07T14:06:19Z
dc.date.available2023-05-18T06:58:12Z
dc.date.issued2023-03
dc.descriptionThesis (MPhil)--Stellenbosch University, 2023.en_ZA
dc.description.abstractENGLISH SUMMARY: Amidst mounting environmental crises, there is pressing need to understand how pro-environmental behaviour develops and transforms into action. Yet, there is confusion as to how to encourage a sense of connection with nature, a concept often referred to as nature connectedness. Drawing on existing research on nature connectedness and exploring what we know about how to encourage its development, my research aims to gain an understanding of nature connectedness as a process, in order to better understand how to facilitate its development with children. More specifically, this entails gaining an understanding of how the relationship between children and nature develops, which experiences promote its development, and what role(s) the nature experience facilitator can play to encourage this connection to develop. My investigation is designed as a qualitative inquiry, combining participatory action research and grounded theory methodologies to gather and analyse data. Adopting a relational paradigm, I engage for a period of six months with a group of 36 children, their parents, and five nature experience facilitators at the Kinship Programme in Durban North, South Africa. I identify five phases of nature connectedness – afraid, comfortable, engaged, caring(self) and caring(activist) – that children experience as they progress on their journey to a deeper sense of connection to nature. My study further identifies which phase-specific experiences encouraged children to progress on their journey of nature connectedness. Finally, my study reveals that children required different support from the nature experience facilitator depending on their phase of nature connectedness and so I identify the different roles that the nature experience facilitator plays – protector, initiator, observer and navigator - in alignment with the child‟s position on their nature connectedness journey. My study makes several contributions to our understanding of how to facilitate the development of nature connectedness. Firstly, focusing on nature connectedness as a process, it complements existing frameworks of nature connectedness and offers a dynamic view of how children move from one phase to another; secondly, it highlights the importance of designing phase-specific experiences to support each child‟s progress in their journey of nature connectedness; and thirdly, it reconciles prior literature by defining the different phase- and transition-specific roles of the nature experience facilitator. My findings provide guidance that can be practically applied in the daily facilitation of nature experiences, in the design of environmental education curricula, and in informing education policy. My findings show that it is possible to intentionally design experiences that promote the development of nature connectedness, and provide phase-based guidelines to facilitators on how to do so.en_ZA
dc.description.abstractAFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Te midde van toenemende omgewingskrisisse is daar ‟n dringende behoefte om te verstaan hoe pro-omgewingsgedrag ontwikkel en in aksie omskep word. Tog is daar verwarring oor hoe om ‟n gevoel van verbondenheid met die natuur, ‟n konsep waarna dikwels as natuurverbondenheid verwys word, aan te moedig. Deur gebruik te maak van bestaande navorsing oor natuurverbondenheid en deur te ondersoek wat ons weet oor hoe om die ontwikkeling daarvan aan te moedig, het my navorsing ten doel om ‟n begrip van natuurverbondenheid as ’n proses te verkry, om beter te verstaan hoe om die ontwikkeling daarvan met kinders te fasiliteer. Dit behels meer spesifiek begrip van hoe die verhouding tussen kinders en die natuur ontwikkel, watter ervarings die ontwikkeling daarvan bevorder en watter rol(le) die natuurervaringsfasiliteerder kan speel om die ontwikkeling van hierdie verbondenheid aan te moedig. My ondersoek is ontwerp as ‟n kwalitatiewe ondersoek, wat deelnemende aksie-navorsing en begronde teorie-metodologiee kombineer om data in te samel en te ontleed. Deur ‟n relasionele paradigma te gebruik, is ek vir ‟n tydperk van ses maande met ‟n groep van 36 kinders, hul ouers en vyf natuurervaringsfasiliteerders by die Kinship-program in Durban-Noord, Suid-Afrika, betrokke. Ek identifiseer vyf fases van natuurverbondenheid – bang, gemaklik, ingeskakel, omgee(self) en omgee(aktivis) – wat kinders ervaar terwyl hulle vorder op hul reis na ‟n dieper gevoel van verbondenheid met die natuur. My studie identifiseer verder watter fase-spesifieke ervarings kinders se vordering op hul reis van natuurverbondenheid aangemoedig het. Ten slotte onthul my studie dat kinders verskillende ondersteuning van die natuurervaringsfasiliteerder benodig het, afhangende van hul fase van natuurverbondenheid en dus identifiseer ek die verskillende rolle wat die natuurervaringsfasiliteerder speel – beskermer, inisieerder, waarnemer en navigeerder – in ooreenstemming met die kind se posisie op hul natuurverbondenheidsreis. My studie lewer verskeie bydraes tot ons begrip van hoe om die ontwikkeling van natuurverbondenheid te fasiliteer. Eerstens, met die fokus op natuurverbondenheid as ’n proses, vul dit bestaande raamwerke van natuurverbondenheid aan en bied dit ‟n dinamiese siening van hoe kinders van een fase na ‟n ander beweeg; tweedens beklemtoon dit die belangrikheid van die ontwerp van fase-spesifieke ervarings om elke kind se vordering in hul natuurverbondenheidreis te ondersteun; en derdens versoen dit voorafgaande literatuur deur die natuurervaringsfasiliteerder se verskillende fase- en oorgangspesifieke rolle te definieer. My bevindinge bied riglyne wat prakties toegepas kan word in die daaglikse fasilitering van natuurervarings, in die ontwerp van omgewingsopvoedingskurrikulums en by die inligting van onderwysbeleid. My bevindinge toon dat dit moontlik is om doelbewus ervarings te ontwerp wat die ontwikkeling van natuurverbondenheid bevorder, en fasegebaseerde riglyne aan fasiliteerders te verskaf oor hoe om dit te doen.af_ZA
dc.description.versionMasters
dc.format.extentxii, 94 pages : illustrations (color), maps, includes annexures
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/10019.1/126972
dc.language.isoen_ZAen_ZA
dc.publisherStellenbosch : Stellenbosch University
dc.rights.holderStellenbosch University
dc.subject.lcshEnvironmental education -- Durban North (South Africa)en_ZA
dc.subject.lcshNature -- Psychological aspects -- Durban North (South Africa)en_ZA
dc.subject.lcshChildren and the environment -- Durban North (South Africa)en_ZA
dc.subject.nameUCTD
dc.titleFacilitating the development of nature connectednessen_ZA
dc.typeThesisen_ZA
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