Author Date

2025-05-15

Degree Name

Department

Psychology

College

Family, Home, and Social Sciences

Defense Date

2025-03-27

Publication Date

2025-05-15

First Faculty Advisor

Sam Hardy

First Faculty Reader

Jared Warren

Honors Coordinator

Ed Gantt

Keywords

nature, God, prayer, spirituality

Abstract

Experiences in nature allow individuals to connect with God powerfully. Many researchers have considered the benefits of nature (Fredrickson & Anderson, 1999; Louv, 2008; Unsworth et al., 2016), but few have studied the potential for nature to help individuals connect with Deity (Naor & Mayseless, 2020). The present study seeks to understand how nature can help people have a deeper connection to God, considering both vertical and horizontal spirituality (Krauss & Silver, 2021). Participants felt that spending time in nature strengthened their conviction that God is the creator of all things. Many participants shared that being outside allowed them to have more meaningful prayers or conversations with God. All participants shared experiences where they connected with God in the outdoors, as well as experiences outdoors where they were not able to find a deeper connection with God. Overall, participants indicated that spending time in the natural world increased their connection to God.