The healing power of Camellia japonica L.: how flower types influence urban residents’ physiological and psychological wellbeing

Color and form are closely related to our daily lives and can directly and rapidly affect people’s emotions, and it is of great significance to study the effects of color and form of garden plants on the body and mind of urban residents. In this study, the shrub Camellia japonica L., which has rich...

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Main Authors: Lijiao Ai, Huan Wang, Yilong Feng, Ting Li, Zezhou Li, Min Zou, Qiaoyong Zhang
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Frontiers Media S.A. 2025-02-01
Series:Frontiers in Psychology
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2025.1489859/full
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author Lijiao Ai
Lijiao Ai
Huan Wang
Huan Wang
Yilong Feng
Yilong Feng
Ting Li
Ting Li
Zezhou Li
Zezhou Li
Min Zou
Min Zou
Qiaoyong Zhang
Qiaoyong Zhang
author_facet Lijiao Ai
Lijiao Ai
Huan Wang
Huan Wang
Yilong Feng
Yilong Feng
Ting Li
Ting Li
Zezhou Li
Zezhou Li
Min Zou
Min Zou
Qiaoyong Zhang
Qiaoyong Zhang
author_sort Lijiao Ai
collection DOAJ
description Color and form are closely related to our daily lives and can directly and rapidly affect people’s emotions, and it is of great significance to study the effects of color and form of garden plants on the body and mind of urban residents. In this study, the shrub Camellia japonica L., which has rich germplasm resources, was selected as the research object. It aims to address the following research questions: how flower colors and flower types of Camellia japonica L. affect human physiology and psychology? In this study, we recruited 158 participants to participate in a controlled experiment to quantitatively measure and analyze physiological (heart rate, blood pressure, oxygen saturation, electroencephalogram [EEG]) and psychological (anger, panic, nervousness, energy, fatigue, depression, and self-esteem) indices before and after viewing pictures of Camellia japonica L. of all colors and flower types, as well as of them in different colony configurations. The results of evaluating physiological indexes and POMS values showed that different types of Camellia japonica L. images had different restorative benefits. From the physiological indicators, blood pressure metrics were more sensitive as an evaluation of recovery effects than those of heart rate and oxygen saturation, and stress recovery was more significant after color stimulation than petal category and landscape type. Color, petal type, and landscape configuration type affect relaxation, concentration restoration, and other moods differently reflected by α wave and β wave of EEG. POMS questionnaires showed that viewing different types of picture processes of Camellia sinensis significantly reduced nervousness, anger, fatigue, depression, panic, and self-esteem, and the effect was significant in males than in females. Our findings provide a theoretical basis and selection for the garden application of Camellia japonica L. in a broader sense, intending to improve their health benefits and maximize the restorative effects of urban environments.
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publishDate 2025-02-01
publisher Frontiers Media S.A.
record_format Article
series Frontiers in Psychology
spelling doaj-art-8b7b47cba6a74efb86446ecf2760ca062025-08-20T02:03:35ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Psychology1664-10782025-02-011610.3389/fpsyg.2025.14898591489859The healing power of Camellia japonica L.: how flower types influence urban residents’ physiological and psychological wellbeingLijiao Ai0Lijiao Ai1Huan Wang2Huan Wang3Yilong Feng4Yilong Feng5Ting Li6Ting Li7Zezhou Li8Zezhou Li9Min Zou10Min Zou11Qiaoyong Zhang12Qiaoyong Zhang13Chongqing Landscape and Gardening Research Institute, Chongqing, ChinaChongqing Key Laboratory of Germplasm Innovation and Utilization of Native Plants, Chongqing, ChinaChongqing Landscape and Gardening Research Institute, Chongqing, ChinaChongqing Key Laboratory of Germplasm Innovation and Utilization of Native Plants, Chongqing, ChinaChongqing Landscape and Gardening Research Institute, Chongqing, ChinaChongqing Key Laboratory of Germplasm Innovation and Utilization of Native Plants, Chongqing, ChinaChongqing Landscape and Gardening Research Institute, Chongqing, ChinaChongqing Key Laboratory of Germplasm Innovation and Utilization of Native Plants, Chongqing, ChinaChongqing Landscape and Gardening Research Institute, Chongqing, ChinaChongqing Key Laboratory of Germplasm Innovation and Utilization of Native Plants, Chongqing, ChinaChongqing Landscape and Gardening Research Institute, Chongqing, ChinaChongqing Key Laboratory of Germplasm Innovation and Utilization of Native Plants, Chongqing, ChinaChongqing Landscape and Gardening Research Institute, Chongqing, ChinaChongqing Key Laboratory of Germplasm Innovation and Utilization of Native Plants, Chongqing, ChinaColor and form are closely related to our daily lives and can directly and rapidly affect people’s emotions, and it is of great significance to study the effects of color and form of garden plants on the body and mind of urban residents. In this study, the shrub Camellia japonica L., which has rich germplasm resources, was selected as the research object. It aims to address the following research questions: how flower colors and flower types of Camellia japonica L. affect human physiology and psychology? In this study, we recruited 158 participants to participate in a controlled experiment to quantitatively measure and analyze physiological (heart rate, blood pressure, oxygen saturation, electroencephalogram [EEG]) and psychological (anger, panic, nervousness, energy, fatigue, depression, and self-esteem) indices before and after viewing pictures of Camellia japonica L. of all colors and flower types, as well as of them in different colony configurations. The results of evaluating physiological indexes and POMS values showed that different types of Camellia japonica L. images had different restorative benefits. From the physiological indicators, blood pressure metrics were more sensitive as an evaluation of recovery effects than those of heart rate and oxygen saturation, and stress recovery was more significant after color stimulation than petal category and landscape type. Color, petal type, and landscape configuration type affect relaxation, concentration restoration, and other moods differently reflected by α wave and β wave of EEG. POMS questionnaires showed that viewing different types of picture processes of Camellia sinensis significantly reduced nervousness, anger, fatigue, depression, panic, and self-esteem, and the effect was significant in males than in females. Our findings provide a theoretical basis and selection for the garden application of Camellia japonica L. in a broader sense, intending to improve their health benefits and maximize the restorative effects of urban environments.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2025.1489859/fullCamellia japonica L.visual perceptionemotionsbiological feedbackurban landscape
spellingShingle Lijiao Ai
Lijiao Ai
Huan Wang
Huan Wang
Yilong Feng
Yilong Feng
Ting Li
Ting Li
Zezhou Li
Zezhou Li
Min Zou
Min Zou
Qiaoyong Zhang
Qiaoyong Zhang
The healing power of Camellia japonica L.: how flower types influence urban residents’ physiological and psychological wellbeing
Frontiers in Psychology
Camellia japonica L.
visual perception
emotions
biological feedback
urban landscape
title The healing power of Camellia japonica L.: how flower types influence urban residents’ physiological and psychological wellbeing
title_full The healing power of Camellia japonica L.: how flower types influence urban residents’ physiological and psychological wellbeing
title_fullStr The healing power of Camellia japonica L.: how flower types influence urban residents’ physiological and psychological wellbeing
title_full_unstemmed The healing power of Camellia japonica L.: how flower types influence urban residents’ physiological and psychological wellbeing
title_short The healing power of Camellia japonica L.: how flower types influence urban residents’ physiological and psychological wellbeing
title_sort healing power of camellia japonica l how flower types influence urban residents physiological and psychological wellbeing
topic Camellia japonica L.
visual perception
emotions
biological feedback
urban landscape
url https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2025.1489859/full
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