A comparison of perspectives on urban green spaces in European countries and South Korea

This study compared people with high and low levels of experience with nature, to investigate differences in the use of urban green spaces, as well as to better understand recreational satisfaction and health in these two groups, focusing on the relationship between the awareness of the health-promoting and restorative power of urban green spaces and recreational satisfaction. Face-to-face questionnaire surveys were conducted in 24 locations (N = 558) in Korea, Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. Korean respondents represented people with low levels of experience with nature; respondents from the three European countries represented people with higher levels of experience with nature. Results showed a relationship between recreational satisfaction and awareness of health-promoting and restorative properties for European respondents, and a relationship between management satisfaction and perception of physically restorative properties among Korean respondents. Europeans perceived urban green spaces to be restorative at a higher rate (45%) than Koreans, only 18% of whom perceived urban green spaces in this way. This corroborates findings from other studies indicating that those with more experience with nature perceive urban green spaces to be more restorative and health promoting. This indicates that the healing power of urban green spaces is not just in their availability, but also in how they are perceived and experienced by residents.