In this dissertation, we aimed at better understanding the role of learning in shaping the contents of consciousness. To capture variations in consciousness, we took subjective measures as a starting point, and we performed several studies measuring their relation to human behavior, peripheral physiology and brain physiology in about 160 participants. We first focused on the learning mechanisms implicated in learning with feedback from the body, and then investigated how autonomic responses related to several aspects of awareness in associative learning tasks. Our results provide evidence that people can improve in their sensitivity to discriminate between mental states, while their confidence in doing so is unaffected. Our results also indicate no evidence for the malleability of phasic heart rate response by implicit knowledge. Taken together, these results suggest that consciousness is not easily influenced by learning with external feedback from the body. At a more abstract conceptual level, we explored several methodological considerations when interpreting changes in subjective reports and separated the potential contributions of knowledge and direct perception. Finally, we presented a novel taxonomy for categorizing neurofeedback paradigms, which may be of help to disentangle the learning process that is implicated in neurofeedback. / Doctorat en Sciences psychologiques et de l'éducation / info:eu-repo/semantics/nonPublished

We present an overview of the evidence of how nature benefits mental health, popular theories used to explain the effects, and the development potential of these theories. A large body of evidence highlights the beneficial effects of nature on mental health, with observed outcomes ranging from alleviating the symptoms of psychiatric disorders to improvements in cognitive abilities. The theoretical backbone for these salutary effects of nature consists of a set of models, mainly the attention restoration theory (ART), the stress reduction theory (SRT), and the Biophilia hypothesis. However, these high-level models are only loosely related and lack a pronounced biopsychological basis. While biopsychological measurements have been used widely in recent years, these efforts have not sufficiently been reflected in theories aiming to explain the benefits of nature contact for mental health. This paper seeks to encourage interdisciplinary work and further theory development to guide both research and practice toward strategically green and healthy living conditions. / Der Beitrag bietet einen Überblick über Forschungsbefunde zu positiven Effekten von Naturkontakt auf die psychische Gesundheit, über gängige Theorien zur Erklärung dieser Effekte und das Entwicklungspotenzial dieser Theorien. Es gibt zahlreiche Belege für die positiven Auswirkungen der Natur auf die psychische Gesundheit, wobei die beobachteten Ergebnisse von der Symptomlinderung psychischer Störungen bis zur Verbesserung kognitiver Fähigkeiten reichen. Die theoretische Grundlage für diese gesundheitsförderlichen Effekte der Natur besteht vor allem aus der Attention Restoration Theory (ART), der Stress Reduction Theory (SRT) und der Biophilie-Hypothese. Diese relativ abstrakten Modelle stehen miteinander nur in losem Zusammenhang und haben keine ausgeprägte biopsychologische Grundlage. Während biopsychologische Messungen in den letzten Jahren zunehmend in der Forschung eingesetzt wurden, steht eine Integration dieser Erkenntnisse in den genannten Theorien noch aus. Dieser Beitrag soll die interdisziplinäre Arbeit und die weitere Theorieentwicklung fördern, um Forschung und Praxis in Richtung grüner und gesunder Lebensbedingungen zu lenken.