attention restoration theory attention restoration theory attention restoration theory (art) asserts that people can concentrate better after spending time in nature, or even looking at scenes of nature. natural environments abound with "soft fascinations" which a person can reflect upon in "effortless attention", such as clouds moving across the sky, leaves rustling in a breeze or water bubbling over rocks in a stream. philosophically, nature has long been seen as a source of peace and energy, yet the scientific community started rigorous testing only as recently as the 1990s which has allowed scientific and accurate comments to be made about if nature has a restorative attribute. cognitive psychology perception visual perception object recognition face recognition pattern recognition attention memory aging and memory emotional memory learning long-term memory metacognition language metalanguage thinking cognition concept reasoning decision making problem solving numerical cognition numerosity adaptation effect approximate number system parallel individuation system the theory was developed by rachel and stephen kaplan in the 1980s in their book the experience of nature: a psychological perspective, and has since been found by others to hold true in medical outcomes as well as intellectual task attention, as described below. berman et al. discuss the foundation of the attention restoration theory (art). "art is based on past research showing the separation of attention into two components: involuntary attention, where attention is captured by inherently intriguing or important stimuli, and voluntary or directed attention, where attention is directed by cognitive-control processes." restorative environments restoration or psychological restoration in the environmental psychology field is the recovery of depleted resources which can be psychological (attention and emotions), physiological (stress) and/or social. this results from interaction with a restorative environment to change negative states to positive ones. psychological restoration can be described as the capability of perception of restoration, as an observer can perceive the properties of an environment that relieves the mental fatigue and stress in a person. the kaplans describe a series of characteristics that an environment must have to be restorative. fascination: the ability of an environment to generate awe in people; the amount of awe can give the directed attention a rest as the involuntary attention appears in its place. being away: a feeling that can be objective or subjective in form, e.g. a person can be far away from a location or can let his or her mind go from everyday life and worries. extension: the connection between each element found in an environment; the feeling of being able to travel through the environment in order to look for the information it provides. compatibility: characteristics found in an environment that meet the preferences and goals of a person. mental fatigue