Effects of personality, health and mood on satisfaction and quality perception of urban mountain parks

Abstract

The aim of this study was to examine whether personality traits, health status, and moods are systematically related to perceived urban mountain park quality and recreation satisfaction. Previous studies on park-related satisfaction have typically tried to understand the effects of environmental attributes on people’s recreation satisfaction. However, park satisfaction studies also require careful consideration of visitor opinions and individual traits such as personality, health, and mood, as these will likely have an impact on perceptions and satisfaction. First, an urban mountain park quality perception scale (UMPQPS) was developed to assess perceived park quality through semi-structured interviews and content analysis. The UMPQPS ultimately included 17 attributes which were then used in a second study. We collected data by on-site interviewing 770 park visitors (677 questionnaires were valid) to three urban mountain parks in Fuzhou, China. Direct and indirect effects of personality traits, health status, and moods on ratings of perceived urban mountain park quality and recreation satisfaction were investigated using path analysis. Personality mainly affected park quality perception and satisfaction indirectly through the paths of health and mood, while the effects of health status and moods were both direct and indirect. Individual socio-demographic variables were correlated with personality, health, and mood, and mainly influenced park quality perception and satisfaction indirectly. This study contributes to the current body of knowledge, where previous studies of park satisfaction have sometimes overlooked these factors. Findings can support park design and management, ultimately enhancing visitor perceptions and satisfaction.