Leisure Attitude and Psychological Well-Being Among Older Adults: An Asymmetrical Dual-Pathway Model for Healthy Aging

Background/Objectives: Promoting psychological well-being is a central goal in healthy aging research. While leisure has been widely recognized as an important contributor to well-being in later life, the underlying psychological mechanisms remain insufficiently understood. This study aims to examine the relative roles of cognitive and experiential mechanisms in shaping psychological well-being among older adults. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted with 200 older adults participating in community-based leisure programs in South Korea. Data were analyzed using confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modeling. A dual-pathway model was tested, in which leisure attitude represents a cognitive mechanism and leisure satisfaction reflects an experiential mechanism. Results: Leisure attitude significantly influenced both leisure satisfaction and psychological well-being, while leisure satisfaction also had a positive but comparatively weaker effect on well-being. Mediation analysis confirmed that leisure satisfaction partially mediates the relationship between leisure attitude and psychological well-being. Notably, the direct effect of leisure attitude (β = 0.368) was substantially stronger than that of leisure satisfaction (β = 0.150), supporting an asymmetrical du-al-pathway structure. Conclusions: These findings highlight the dominant role of cognitive appraisal in shaping well-being in later life and suggest a shift from experience-centered to cognition-centered frameworks in aging research. Interventions aimed at promoting healthy aging should therefore focus not only on improving the quality of leisure experiences but also on fostering positive cognitive orientations toward leisure.