Beekeeping as a Therapeutic Modality to Address Stress and Increase Well-Being for Undergraduate Students

The purpose of this study was to develop a pilot program to explore the impact and therapeutic potential of beekeeping as a modality to reduce stress, improve mental well-being, and increase nature-connectedness among undergraduate students. This study employed an exploratory design using qualitative inquiry. Evidence from the participant interviews indicates that experiences with beekeeping activities and education engendered an overall beneficial impact to participants' perceived stress, nature-connectedness, and well-being. Limitations included the lack of specificity in an interview question about well-being, scheduling difficulties, uncertainty of weather conditions, and a lack of generalizability due to the use of convenience sampling.