Nature, Biopsychosocial Child Behavior and ADHD

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DOI:

https://doi.org/10.15448/1981-2582.2025.1.48180

Keywords:

ADHD, experiences with nature, environment, learning.

Abstract

Along with affective, physical, social, and cultural factors, the environment also affects child biopsychosocial development. Given this reality that pervades specialized studies in the development area, one might ask: how contact with nature might affect the development of children with Specific Educational Needs (SEN)? The aim of this study is to understand the impacts of nature in biopsychosocial development processes of children, especially those with Attention Deficit and Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), based on evidence provided by scientific studies. A integrative analysis was used, adopting five search bases: Portal de Periódicos da CAPES; Periódicos Eletrônicos de Psicologia (PEPSIC); Biblioteca Virtual em Saúde (BVS); Science Direct; Scientific Electronic Library Online (SCIELO) e PubMed. Descriptors were the following: Vivências com a Natureza (experiences with nature) AND TDAH (ADHD); Meio Ambiente (environment) AND Aprendizagem (learning); TDAH; ADHD; Nature; Health. A total of 33 results were identified as corresponding to the aim of this study; only four directly addressed the relationship between nature and ADHD, while the others presented an in-depth study of directly correlated topics: human beings-nature/well-being/learning. These 33 papers comprise the corpus of this study. It has been shown that contact with natural environments offers significant improvements in ADHD symptoms and positively affects the cognitive and socio-affective development of children with this disorder, providing benefits to health and well-being. Contact with nature can be an excellent resource for those who need calm, concentration, building or recovering self-confidence, which is the case of children with ADHD, but it is not limited to them.

 

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Author Biographies

Monica Maria Siqueira Damasceno, Federal Institute of Education, Science and Technology of Ceará, Juazeiro do Norte, CE, Brazil.

Postdoctoral researcher at the Department of Education and Psychology, University of Aveiro, Portugal; PhD in Science: Environment and Development, University of Vale do Taquari (Univates), with a sandwich doctorate from the University of Aveiro, Portugal, in the Department of Education and Psychology. Master's Degree in Child and Adolescent Health. Educator and Specialist in Psychology Applied to Education and Specialist in Mental Health. Professor at the Federal Institute of Education, Science, and Technology – Ceará, Juazeiro do Norte campus.

Jane Marcia Mazzarino, University of Vale do Taquari (Univates), Lajeado, RS, Brazil.

PhD and Master's degree in Communication Sciences from the University of Vale do Rio dos Sinos, undergraduate degree in Social Communication with a major in Journalism from the University of Vale do Rio dos Sinos. CNPq PQ2 Productivity Scholarship. Permanent professor in the Environment and Development Graduate Program (PPGAD) at the University of Vale do Taquari – Univates. Professor of Social Communication and Medicine courses at the same institution.

Aida Figueiredo, University of Aveiro, Aveiro, Portugal.

PhD from the Doctoral Program in Psychology at the University of Aveiro. Assistant Professor at the University of Aveiro – Department of Education and Psychology.

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Published

2025-12-18

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Damasceno, M. M. S., Mazzarino, J. M., & Figueiredo, A. (2025). Nature, Biopsychosocial Child Behavior and ADHD. Educação, 48(1), e48180. https://doi.org/10.15448/1981-2582.2025.1.48180

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