Nature-Based Experience and Quality of Life in Mongolia and Rural South Korea: A Context-Dependent Perspective on Natural Resource Use

This study examines how nature-based experience is associated with quality of life (QOL) under contrasting socio-ecological and labour-mobility-related conditions. Using an exploratory comparative design, survey data were collected from a Mongolian mobility-related sample in Ulaanbaatar and surrounding areas and from rural receiving communities in South Korea. Environmental values were measured using the New Ecological Paradigm (NEP), while nature-based experience was operationalized through visit frequency and duration of stay in natural environments. QOL was measured using items based on the WHOQOL framework. The results indicate clear differences between the two samples in environmental values, QOL, and patterns of nature-based experience. More importantly, the association between nature-based experience and QOL was not uniform across contexts. Visit frequency was positively associated with QOL in the Mongolian sample, whereas no comparable association was observed in the South Korean sample. By contrast, duration of stay did not show a comparable significant interaction effect. These findings suggest that the well-being relevance of nature-based experience may depend on the socio-ecological role of nature in each context. Given the use of convenience sampling, cross-sectional data, and the absence of full measurement invariance testing, the findings should be interpreted as exploratory comparative evidence rather than as statistically generalizable national-level conclusions. The study contributes to land-use, rural development, and socio-ecological research by highlighting the context-dependent relationship between natural resource use, human–nature experience, and QOL.