Abstract:

The purpose of this research was to explore how contact with nature may contribute to a sense of interconnectedness, encouraging participation in community service activities. Specifically, this study sheds light on the role that nature plays in the lives of people who are notably service-oriented, and what this can teach us about human nature, as well as identifying implications for education and land-use planning. Research studies in recreation and environmental psychology on the benefits of nature have focused primarily on the therapeutic effects for the individual of spending time in the outdoors, as with wilderness therapy. The stress-reducing properties of natural settings have been well documented. However, little has been explored in terms of how the personally therapeutic effects of nature, such as feelings of vibrant aliveness, could possibly translate into shifts of consciousness that influence social change. Informed by Organic Inquiry, 12 community service exemplars (6 men and 6 women) ranging in age from 30 to 62 were identified. Sixty-seven percent identified as Caucasian; the remaining identified as East Indian, African American, Mexican, and Assyrian. Eleven out of the 12 lived in the Bay Area; 1 resided in Wisconsin. Nine out of the 12 received the Jefferson Award for Community Service, and 3 demonstrated exemplary levels of service activities in their community. The exemplars' stories were gathered with the aim to illuminate the relationship between contact with nature, experiences of interconnectedness, and the drive toward community service. A thematic content analysis yielded themes including joyous childhood memories associated with nature, painful childhood memories soothed by nature, danger and aliveness, emotional well-being, shifts in perspective, creative inspiration, and experiencing a sense of the sacred. Findings were examined through the lens of transpersonal psychology, and the role of nature in contributing to lifestyles characterized by service was explored and considered.

*This dissertation is a compound document (contains both a paper copy and a CD as part of the dissertation). The CD requires the following system requirements: Adobe Acrobat.