This study primarily focuses on children’s perceptions of the natural environment during a nature camp in Antwerp. The secondary focus concerns the children’s connection to this environment. A theoretical framework of six concepts, based on existing literature in this area was employed as an orientation throughout the research: a) the physical environment; b) actions and experiences; c) the affective dimension; d) the social aspect; e) the human-nature relationship; and f) conceptualization of nature. A dual-method qualitative approach was applied, combining children’s drawings of the natural environment at the camp setting with interviews. Through an abductive process of codebook thematic analysis, two main themes were identified. The first theme was named ‘doing’ i.e. play and the second theme was named ‘being’ i.e. immersion. The first theme indicates that the children perceive the natural environment mainly through doing, specifically as a space to play. Additionally, the second theme suggests that the children perceive the natural environment through being, that is by immersion. Yet, there is no distinct line between these two themes as play is children’s natural way of being. Ultimately, these themes are two sides of one narrative in which ‘doing/being’ is intrinsically entwined in a process of relational interaction and immersion in and with the natural environment.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:UPSALLA1/oai:DiVA.org:liu-204202 |
| Date | January 2024 |
| Creators | Manganiello, Selena |
| Publisher | Linköpings universitet, Institutionen för beteendevetenskap och lärande |
| Source Sets | DiVA Archive at Upsalla University |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Student thesis, info:eu-repo/semantics/bachelorThesis, text |
| Format | application/pdf, application/pdf |
| Rights | info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess, info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess |
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