Abstract
COVID-19 is reshaping human interactions with the natural environment, potentially generating profound consequences for health and well-being. To assess the effects of COVID-19 on the outdoor recreation participation and subjective well-being of adolescents, as well as how participation in outdoor activities may mitigate declines in subjective well-being, we used a Qualtrics XM panel to conduct a nationally representative survey of youth ages 10–18 across the United States (n = 624) between 30 April and 15 June 2020. Survey questions focused on frequency of participation in outdoor activities before and during the pandemic, as well as changes in subjective well-being. Paired t-tests revealed decreases in both outdoor recreation participation (64% reported declines) and subjective well-being (52% reported declines). A regression model examining correlates of changes in subjective well-being (R2 = 0.42) revealed strong associations with changes in outdoor play (B = 0.44, p < 0.001) and nature-based (B = 0.21, p = 0.016) activities. Adolescents’ from all backgrounds who participated in these activities during the pandemic reported smaller declines in subjective well-being. Results highlight the critical role that time outdoors and time in nature play in bolstering adolescents’ resilience to stressors such as the COVID-19 pandemic and underscore the need to facilitate outdoor recreation opportunities for youth during times of crisis.
Highlights
Adolescents with high participation rates in outdoor play activities prior to the pandemic had smaller decreases in their Subjective well-being (SWB), and those that continued to participate in outdoor play and nature-based activities during the pandemic were buffered against declines in SWB
Our results indicate that frequent participation in outdoor play activities prior to the pandemic provided lasting resilience against drops in SWB during the pandemic
Our results indicate that similar trends may hold for adolescents, with those who participate in frequent outdoor play having increased resiliency to declines in SWB under stress
Summary
Global change threatens the resilience of socio-ecological systems, including human health and well-being. In the context of human health, resilience can be defined as the ability to maintain a high-level of well-being by coping and adapting to adverse social and environmental changes [2,3,4,5]. Subjective well-being (SWB), defined as a sense of life satisfaction, positive affect, and low negative affect [6,7], is one measure of mental health that may promote resilience to these challenges [2,3,8,9]. Often referred to as a measure of happiness [10], SWB is recognized as the primary measure of hedonic well-being [7] and is frequently employed as an indicator of mental health [11,12]. Understanding the factors that contribute to SWB during a crisis is an important step in identifying strategies to build resilience as global change progresses
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