Biophilic Design Interventions for Indoor Environments: Exploring Nature Connectedness, Well-being, and Public Acceptance Through a Within-subjects Experiment

The need for humans to connect with nature, known as biophilia, is well-established. Despite the proven benefits of nature exposure, modern indoor living often disconnects individuals from nature, particularly in windowless spaces. This disconnect has led to the development of biophilic design interventions aimed at integrating nature into built environments to enhance occupant well-being and connectedness to nature. In this study, we investigated the effectiveness and public acceptance of indoor biophilic design interventions, referred to as biophilic illusions, among 345 California-based participants through an online questionnaire. Specifically, we evaluated three modalities of biophilic illusions: wind-animated tree shadows, sun-animated lighting, and location-responsive sounds, using low-fidelity digital prototypes. The study’s two objectives were to: (1) evaluate the effectiveness of biophilic design interventions in promoting nature connectedness and occupant well-being, and (2) understand the factors influencing public acceptance of these technological interventions using the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology 2 (UTAUT2) model. Our results suggest that integrating biophilic illusions in windowless or confined indoor spaces can positively affect an occupant’s nature connectedness and well-being. We also found that performance expectancy, social influence, and hedonic motivation significantly influence the behavioral intention to use all three design interventions.