Children who play outdoors more frequently at an early age are more likely to have a healthy mental health trajectory through middle childhood, according to a report in The Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry.Why It’s Relevant
Youth mental health is a global concern, and many disorders, such as depression and anxiety, have their origin in early childhood. Outdoor play is a modifiable factor that has been linked to positive social, cognitive and emotional development. Despite its potential benefits, children’s outdoor play has declined markedly in recent decades because of increased road traffic, fears around safety, and increased access to screen-based activities.
By the Numbers
- The researchers analyzed two sets of data on 4,151 children in the Growing Up in Scotland study: the weekly frequency of outdoor play from ages 2 through 4, and degree of externalizing problems and internalizing symptoms from ages 4 through 8.
- Externalizing and internalizing symptoms were grouped into three trajectories: normative (few symptoms across childhood), increasing (moderate symptoms that increase with age), and decreasing (high symptoms that decrease with age).
- Each extra day of outdoor play per week reduced the likelihood of a child having a non-normative mental health trajectory by 6% to 12%, with slightly greater reductions for internalizing versus externalizing symptoms.
The Other Side
Outdoor play and mental health trajectories were based on parent reports, which may have been biased. Further, since the data were collected, new survey measures of outdoor play have been developed that would provide more nuanced insights into the types, timings, and locations of outdoor play.
Takeaway Message
The researchers noted that this is one of the first studies providing longitudinal data on the association between outdoor play during the preschool years and subsequent mental health. Future longitudinal work would benefit from a more detailed analysis of early outdoor play, using multiple methods. Given rising concerns about children’s mental health and declining play opportunities, these findings highlight the need to incorporate outdoor play into a preventive public mental health agenda, the researchers concluded.
Related Information
Source
Helen F. Dodd, et al. Early outdoor play predicts trajectories of child mental health in a population-based cohort. The Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry. Published June 8, 2026. doi.org/10.1111/jcpp.70175
(Image: Getty Images/iStock/Kalinovskiy)
