AUTHOR=Verheyen Lore , van Engelen Bo H. W. , Winkens Bjorn , Vanbrabant Kenneth , Hannes Ellen , Nawrot Tim S. , Malina Robert , van Schayck Onno C. P. , Plusquin Michelle 

TITLE=The impact of greening interventions in school grounds on social behavior and cognitive performance among primary school children

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Public Health

VOLUME=Volume 13 - 2025

YEAR=2025

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/public-health/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2025.1620199

DOI=10.3389/fpubh.2025.1620199

ISSN=2296-2565

ABSTRACT=BackgroundGreen spaces have been identified as beneficial for children’s mental health, as well as cognitive performance, however, less is known about the role of biodiversity within these environments. Here, we study the impact of greening schoolyards, especially with regard to biodiversity enrichment, on children’s behavior, emotion recognition, cognitive performance and mental effort, and attentional bias, compared to observations in control schools.MethodsThis study employs an interventional design, including two intervention and two control schools located in Belgium and the Netherlands. Data was collected from 169 children aged 7–12 years, assessing cognitive performance using a battery of cognitive tasks combined with eye tracking, as well as socio-emotional wellbeing via eye tracking and validated questionnaires. Baseline measurements were followed up every 6 months for 2 years.FindingsSelective attention in the Stroop test and mental effort, as indicated by enlarged pupil diameters during cognitive tasks, increased more over time in the intervention group compared to the control group as schoolyard greening progressed. The intervention was associated with improved scores on prosocial behavior over time. These associations were independent of sex, age, country, education level of the household, the capacity to manage household incomes, and season. Attentional bias towards the emotion of happiness using eye-tracking did not show a significant difference in changes over time between intervention and control groups.InterpretationThese findings suggest that a green, more biodiverse school environment could improve children’s cognitive and emotional functioning, highlighting the importance of designing schoolyard green spaces that enhance both nature contact and biodiversity as a valuable public health initiative.