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Nature and Happiness:
Hypothesis:
Hypothesis:
Implementing a program to clean up Seattle's urban biomass waste would be beneficial for local residents: both housed and unhoused.
Overgrown lupine in Bellingham
Introduction
Introduction
Impetus for my study
Impetus for my study
The natural world is beautiful, but it presents its own problems. It can be overwhelming to navigate and difficult to harmonize with in our industrious, human lives. Walking around Seattle in June, I noticed that people don't say "hi" to each other. They walk their dogs, or complete their commute with heads down, and at times all the greenery felt claustrophobic.
Research methods and presenting data
Research methods and presenting data
I set out to find data to support my hypothesis. Herein are examples of aspects of using the scientific method:
Delineating between quantitative and qualitative data
Analyzing the source of data and its reliability
Drawing conclusions from data and continuing to test the relatedness of those ideas by treating the conclusion as a hypothesis
Being conservative about drawing conclusions based on already-drawn conclusions instead of evidence
Utilizing tools for collecting data such as NPS Query Builder
Adequately documenting resources used
Effective use of time and ability to dynamically define scope of work
AI can be a great resource as a starting point for gathering ideas
Conflation if ideas is common in social science
Overgrown lavender in Seattle
Resources and Data
Resources and Data
Challenges and Available Data
Challenges and Available Data
Social psychology data is "soft," subjective, and difficult to gather, and therefore difficult to present in a meaningful way, eg. Happiest Cities in America (2024)
It's easy to conflate data and research questions
Scope of work needs to be evaluated against the desire to solve multiple social injustice problems at once
Many organizations, such as the National Park Service (NPS) , have been keeping reliable, qualitative data for a long time. NPS has a whole system dedicated to Social Science, which includes "Socioeconomic Monitoring," NPS Visitor Use Statistics, posts public data, and has a Query Builder
There are a multitude of organizations from which to gather reliable data, such as universities and the Department of the Interior
Primary Research Question
Primary Research Question
Supporting Questions
Supporting Questions
Is the weather in Seattle dreary? and How does dreary weather affect residents?
Is the weather in Seattle dreary? and How does dreary weather affect residents?
Seattleites love signature Northwest weather, even if we do like to complain about it (The Seattle Times, 2022)
"A new poll from (N=838 surveyed) Seattle-based PEMCO Insurance shows: 72% of residents in the Seattle and Portland metropolitan areas say the region’s signature rainfall bothers them little to none. Some 55% of residents say it mostly or exactly matches their weather preferences. Just as rain comes into the forecast, Seattle is named the nation's gloomiest city"
Image credit: King5
Is Seattle really the gloomiest city in America? Psychological data debunk finding. (KNKX Public Radio, 2020)
"A recent study named Seattle the No. 1 'gloomiest place in America.' The website Bestplaces.net, which ranks locations on all kinds of qualities, created a “gloom index” for the largest cities in the nation, based on weather data during the darkest months of the year. The index ranked the cities by looking at percentage of cloud cover, hours of daylight and days with precipitation. Seattle came in first, followed by Portland, Oregon, and Buffalo, New York. But KNKX weather expert and professor of Atmospheric Sciences Cliff Mass says it doesn’t ring true. And he says this kind of “study” is far from scientific."
“This is not what I would call a peer reviewed scientific study," he said. "It only considered the winter. And it just considered a few weather-related variables." He says if you take a broader view of what is meant by gloomy, you can find many studies that include psychological data to see how weather affects mood. This literature paints a much more complex picture, acknowledging, for example, that some people get depressed when it’s too sunny or humid and that others really perk up or feel soothed by rain. One study found the Southeastern U.S. to be the gloomiest, based on psychological profiles. “Another one used tweets and looked at how many happy tweets there were. And in fact, we are in the middle range,” Mass said. “The saddest place is again in the Southeast United States.”
Is there increased biomass in this climate?
Is there increased biomass in this climate?
"The Pacific Northwest (PNW) region of the United States has the densest biomass in the country,
References from AI Overview:
Biomass Energy: A Sustainable Power Source, Washington Forest Protection Association
High-Biomass Forests of the Pacific Northwest: Who Manages Them and How Much is Protected? Environmental Management, Department of the Interior
Is biomass a stressor to clean up?
Is biomass a stressor to clean up?
"Emotional engagements are central to homeowners’ decision making around yard management practices." Beyond “Lawn People”: The Role of Emotions in Suburban Yard Management Practices (Harris, 2011)
How does clutter contribute to happiness?
How does clutter contribute to happiness?
"It is possible that chore engagement may improve executive functions"
Executive functions and household chores: Does engagement in chores predict children's cognition? (Bennett 2022)
Clutter and happiness are correlated.
"Subjective clutter and psychological home strongly predicted wellbeing." (Hart, 2021)
The Seattle-King County healthy homes project: implementation of a comprehensive approach to improving indoor environmental quality for low-income children with asthma. (Allen 2002)
Image credit: Kiplinger
Does exposure to nature contribute to increased happiness?
Does exposure to nature contribute to increased happiness?
See Sense of Place
Can this increased biomass contribute to decreased happiness if it is perceived as clutter?
Can this increased biomass contribute to decreased happiness if it is perceived as clutter?
Study herein: Correlation between clutter and happiness
Overgrown shrubs blocking 40% of Austin sidewalks (KXAN, 2016)
When sidewalks aren’t maintained, they can appear almost jungle-like. The city of Austin says that addressing the overgrown shrubbery would open up 40 percent of existing sidewalks, making them safer and more accessible.
Image credit: KXAN
How do boundaries affect people?
How do boundaries affect people?
National Park, Psychological, Physical (neighbors, fences, clutter)
Apparently "Good fences make good neighbors" is an ambiguous proverb that is used as a title in research in many fields, including computer science and microbiology
After much wading, I finally found an article that actually addressed building fences in urban areas, and why they are beneficial: "Residents of upper-and middle-class American neighborhoods had often chosen privacy and distance as a way to limit conflict, whereas working-class and poor American neighborhoods had increased intimacy and interdependency. (Merry, 2013)
North Cascades National Park is one of the least visited National Parks in the US, but it's clearly not for any lack of splendor. The more likely explanation is the park's unclear boundaries.
Image credit: Barn Furniture
How would cleaner sidewalks and streets affect the unhoused of Seattle?
How would cleaner sidewalks and streets affect the unhoused of Seattle?
Conclusion: EVERYONE would care about cleaner streets and sidewalks, because we are all human.
Unable to find current research.
Research around why some homeless people sweep the streets: sense of accomplishment: Reddit Thread
Having homeless people work mundane jobs such as sweeing the streets is not effective: OrgCode
*Resource: OrgCode Consulting Inc
Resources for future reference
Resources for future reference
The 12 Biggest Myths about Homelessness in America, NYU
OrgCode Consulting Inc
OrgCode Consulting Inc. are leaders in homeless system transformations, leadership development in homeless services, and technical assistance.
OrgCode are merry misfits that disrupt the status quo to be catalysts for better outcomes.
Thought leaders in ending homelessness, we advance ideas, create and share resources, and offer training that doesn’t suck.
Other potentially useful Data
Other potentially useful Data
National Park Service
National Park Service
Interest in NPS visitation data goes back over a century when the first data were collected in 1904. In that first year, six national parks reported a total of 140,954 visitors. Early methods of data collection were informal and documented such things as number of visitors, modes of transportation, and trip origins. Since then, visitor use counting and reporting requirements have been formalized into policy and estimation procedures are designed to take advantage of new technologies. NPS Visitor Use Statistics
Image credit: NPS
North Cascades National Park is one of the least visited National Parks in the US, but it's clearly not for any lack of splendor. The more likely explanation is the park's unclear boundaries. It's entirely possible to plan a trip in the North Cascades without ever once crossing into National Park land. Travel Outlandish
Conclusion
Conclusion
A cleanup program would contribute to safety, cleanliness, and decreased stress among housed residents of Seattle.
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