Aging Naturally: Virtual reality nature vs real-world nature's effects on executive functioning and stress recovery in older adults

Development of Alzheimer's Dementia & other related dementias (ADRD) is characterized by decline in executive functioning (EF), and onset risk of ADRD is increased by stress. Previous work has shown that spending time in nature or virtual reality nature can improve EF and improve stress recovery in younger adults. Yet, little work has examined whether these benefits can extend to older adults. We examine how spending time in either nature or an equivalently designed virtual reality natural environment can affect EF and stress in older adults compared to a lab control condition.