title: Exposure to nature versus relaxation during lunch breaks and recovery from work: development and design of an intervention study to improve workers' health, well-being, work performance and creativity.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The objective of this research project is to understand and to improve workers' recovery from work stress. Although recovery during lunch breaks is the most common within-workday break, it has received only minor research attention. Therefore, we will study whether lunch breaks including a relaxation session or exposure to nature have more favorable outcomes than usually spent lunch breaks concerning: a) recovery processes, b) health, c) well-being, d) job performance and e) creativity. We approach recovery by combining the theoretical frameworks of work and environmental psychology.
  
  
  METHODS
  We conduct an intervention study in a sample of 268 knowledge-workers who engage in different lunch break activities for 15-minutes per day, two weeks in a row. We randomly assign participants to three experimental conditions: 1) exposure to nature, 2) relaxation and 3) control group (lunch break spent as usual). Online questionnaires before and after the intervention assess long term changes regarding recovery processes and the major outcome variables. Before, during and after the intervention, SMS and paper-pencil questionnaires measure the same constructs four times a day with fewer items. We also measure blood pressure and collect saliva samples to map cortisol excretion across the intervention period. A timed experimental task (i.e., the Alternative Uses Task) is used to examine differences in creativity between the three groups after the intervention period.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  By combining the knowledge of work and environmental psychology about recovery and restorative experiences, by merging three recovery perspectives (settings, processes, and outcomes) and by using data triangulation, we produce valid results that broaden our view on mechanisms underlying recovery and enhance our understanding about their links to psychological, behavioural and physiological outcomes, resulting in a more comprehensive picture of work stress recovery in general.
  
  
  BACKGROUND
  ClinicalTrials.gov Protocol Registration System NCT02124837. Registered 24 April 2014.
authors.affiliation: School of Social Sciences and Humanities, 33014 University of Tampere, Tampere, Finland. Jessica.de.bloom@uta.fi.
authors.forename: Jessica
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: de Bloom
authors.forename: Ulla
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Kinnunen
authors.forename: Kalevi
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Korpela
mesh_terms: D002055:Burnout, Professional / Q000517:prevention & control*; D006801:Humans; D007588:Job Satisfaction; D062409:Lunch; D019368:Nature; D016272:Occupational Health; D011788:Quality of Life; D012063:Relaxation; D012107:Research Design; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires