Factors that determine the connectedness with nature in rural and urban contexts

Abstract

Connectedness with nature is considered a key element for the future of conservation. There are both internal and external factors that determine the levels of connectedness with nature. Among these factors are gender, age, knowledge about the environment and place of residence. In the latter case, there may be differences in how urban and rural dwellers perceive nature, based on their experiences and contact with it. The main objective of this research is to evaluate and establish the factors that influence and determine the levels of connection with nature, examining how these factors relate and interact with each other, taking the urban and rural context as starting point. The ABC-CNS scale, which addresses the affective, behavioural and cognitive aspects of the connection with nature, was applied via online questionnaire to a sample of university students from two countries, Spain (496 students) and Ecuador (872 students), who were also clustered according to career, age, gender, and place of residence. The results obtained through four General Linear Mixed Models (ABC-CNS and its dimensions as response variables) and LSD test, demonstrated that the ABC-CNS scale presented significant differences for all the variables analyzed (place of residence, gender, age, and career), also demonstrating which levels influence and interact in higher ABC-CNS values. Finally, the study concludes that the analyzed factors contribute to the development of the connection with nature. In the case of place of residence, attention should be given to the specific settings of the environments under study.