Effects of Dappled Light Patterns on Preference, Fascination, and Restoration in an Online Study

The present work examines, for the first time, the effect of the spatial and temporal composition of dappled light (i.e., sunlight falling through a tree canopy) on preference, fascination, as well as restoration from stress and attention fatigue. In a within-subject online study, 45 participants performed an Auditory Oddball task while one out of three different stimuli was projected to the background of their computer: a grayscale video of dappled light (dynamic dappled light), a single frame from the video (static dappled light), and a grayscale image with the same average luminance as the single frame (control condition). The results of this study show a significant effect of condition on how much participants liked the task background, how fascinating and complex they rated it, and how much it reminded them of nature. Condition did not influence restoration from stress nor improved performance on the Auditory Oddball task. The outcomes of this study show that exposure to both the static and the dynamic dappled light conditions led to a significant increase in reported preference, fascination, association with nature, and perceived complexity compared to the control condition. The dynamic dappled light was also more preferred, more fascinating, and more strongly associated with nature than the static dappled light, showing an effect of temporal variation in the displayed pattern. The results of this study pave the way for further research on identifying the spatial and temporal qualities of daylight that can contribute to the design of indoor environments that support the psychological wellbeing of occupants.