Visual Perspective and Psychological Restoration: Differential Pathways to Cognitive and Emotional Recovery in Mediated Nature Exposure

With the acceleration of urbanization, opportunities for direct contact with nature have diminished, making mediated nature exposure a sustainable approach to promoting public health. Existing studies predominantly present natural stimuli from a first-person horizontal perspective, leaving it unclear whether different viewing perspectives lead to divergent restorative outcomes. To examine how environment type and perspective jointly influence cognitive and emotional restoration, this study employed a 2 (environmental type: forest vs. city) × 2 (perspective: first-person perspective (1PP) vs. third-person perspective (3PP)) × 2 (time: pre-test vs. post-test) mixed experimental design grounded in Attention Restoration Theory (ART). Results showed that viewing forest videos, compared to city videos, significantly improved directed attention and emotional state. More importantly, a functional decoupling of perspectives was observed: the first-person perspective primarily facilitated the restoration of directed attention, while the third-person perspective was more effective in alleviating negative mood. These findings provide empirical evidence for the design of sustainable interventions, guiding both the development of tailored digital nature solutions and the planning of green infrastructure that integrates multiple perspectives. Thereby, nature exposure can be transformed into an equitable public health resource, contributing to the development of resilient, sustainable cities.