Leisure Engagement, Residential Context, and Life Satisfaction Among Older Adults in South Korea: A Cross-Sectional Cohort Comparison, 2012 and 2022

Leisure participation is considered a contributor to sustainable well-being in later life, but its influence may differ across regions and between cohorts of older adults. This study examines how leisure activity relates to life satisfaction among older adults in South Korea and whether these associations vary by residential area over a 10-year period. This study analyzed leisure patterns using nationally representative data from the 2012 ( n = 3191) and 2022 ( n = 3227) waves of the Korean Longitudinal Study of Aging. An ANCOVA was conducted to examine the main and interaction effects of leisure participation and residential area on life satisfaction, adjusting for demographic, socioeconomic, and health-related covariates. The positive association between leisure participation and life satisfaction was weak and mostly non-significant in the 2022 cohort compared to the 2012 cohort. The 2022 cohort also showed higher life satisfaction and better self-rated health, suggesting a more central role of health in shaping well-being. Social and friendship activities, along with alumni and hometown associations, remained the only leisure types consistently linked to higher life satisfaction across both cohorts. Policies should prioritize health promotion and financial security as primary determinants of life satisfaction among older adults. Although leisure participation showed minimal overall effects, targeted support for socially embedded activities (e.g., social gatherings, community associations) may provide supplementary benefits.