The Role of Nature-Based Tourism in Supporting Happiness in the Post-COVID-19 Era: The Case of the Mingchi National Forest Recreation Area

The novel coronavirus (COVID-19) that struck the world in 2019, inciting a global pandemic, has had significant negative psychological consequences for individuals. Drawing on stress reduction theory, attention restoration theory, and the leisure and health buffering model, this study finds that nature-based tourism has the potential to counteract COVID-19-related negative psychological responses and promote increased happiness. In identifying this connection, this study contributes to the empirical research on nature-based tourism and its impact on psychological well-being in the post-COVID-19 era. This study examines the relationships between fear of COVID-19, perceived restorative environment, outdoor leisure activities, and happiness. Data are collected from 391 Taiwanese tourists visiting the Mingchi National Forest Recreation Area in Taiwan. Traditional statistics, confirmatory factor analysis, and structural equation modeling are used for data analysis. The findings reveal significant negative relationships between fear of COVID-19, perceived restorative environment, and outdoor leisure activities, but not happiness. Additionally, significant positive relationships are found to exist between perceived restorative environment, outdoor leisure activities, and happiness. Finally, perceived restorative environment and outdoor leisure activities mediate the relationship between fear of COVID-19 and happiness. Stimulus–response (S-R) theory and a socio-ecological framework for understanding the relationship between greenspace access and health are applied to enable interpretation of the proposed structural model. This study empirically identified changes in sentiment among Taiwanese tourists relating to fear of COVID-19 and happiness in the post-COVID-19 era. The results provide evidence for environmental management institutes and further research.