Serious Leisure,Life Satisfaction,and Health of Older Adults

This study explored the relationships among serious leisure, life satisfaction, and health. The study sample consisted of 454 older adults from two annual events: the 2008 Indiana Senior Olympic Games and 2008 Colorado Senior Olympic Games. Cluster analysis was used to identify distinct groups based upon patterns of serious leisure involvement. In addition, relations among life satisfaction, health, and membership in serious leisure clusters were documented. This analysis resulted in three clusters, and they were named high/medium/low involvement groups. A one-way multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) was employed to determine cluster differences in life satisfaction, physical health, and mental health. MANOVA results revealed significant differences among the clusters on dependent variables. The findings document significant heterogeneity in the expression of serious leisure involvement among the Senior Games participants. The results also suggest that there are positive relationships between level of involvement in serious leisure and life satisfaction and health.     

“Let's Do What Together?!” Shared Activity Perceptions and Relationship Closeness

This study examined when the shared activity of extreme sports predicts relationship closeness. Participants who were skydivers involved in a relationship with a nonskydiver or a fellow skydiver were asked about perceived severity and perceived likelihood of possible negative events related to skydiving. Those who shared the activity of skydiving with their relationship partner reported higher levels of closeness than those who did not. However, this difference was contingent on perceptions of skydiving. Among those who perceived that possible negative events related to skydiving would be likely to happen but low in severity, closeness was higher if skydiving was an activity they shared with their partner. Results are discussed in terms of their implications for the role of shared activities in relationship closeness.     

A Cross-Cultural/National Study of Canadian,Chinese, and Japanese University Students' Leisure Satisfaction and Subjective Well-Being

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study was to examine whether Canadian, Chinese, and Japanese university students' leisure satisfaction affected their subjective well-being (SWB) and, if so, how this process was similar and different cross-culturally/nationally. A series of stepwise multiple regressions indicated that, in general, satisfying leisure significantly and positively impacted SWB across all three cultures, but there were also differences between (a) Canada and both China and Japan in terms of aesthetic leisure satisfaction and (b) China and Japan in terms of psychological and physiological leisure satisfaction. Overall, our results suggest that while satisfying leisure significantly, positively, and substantively impacts SWB in both Western and East Asian cultural contexts, culture frequently influences which specific elements are pertinent. This cross-cultural/national study has important theoretical and practical implications for the currently Western-centric leisure literature and for the understanding of the different roles leisure plays in enhancing SWB across cultures, respectively.     

Amateur choral singing and its implications for the emotional sphere of adult life – a case study

This research note aims to address the lack of research that focuses on the significance of amateur choral singing in the emotional sphere of adult life from an individual’s perspective and over a longer period. The majority of the published research results concerning amateur choral singing refer to choristers as a community; there is a lack of in-depth studies focused on the individual involved in this type of activity. The objective of the study was to identify the ways in which the amateur performance of art may influence the emotional sphere of an individual’s life over many years. The research problem was formulated as the following question: What possible consequences for the emotional sphere of life result from an individual’s practising choral singing? The single case study was chosen as the most appropriate method for answering this question. The respondent was a member of an amateur choir in Cracow, Poland. The data were gathered by means of a semi-structured, in-depth interview. The study conducted provides important insights into the significance of amateur group singing in the emotional sphere of an adult. It leads to the conclusion that amateur choral singing can significantly improve the quality of life of an adult.     

Modeling Change in Older Adults' Leisure Activities

Changes in three domains of leisure (i.e., informal, formal, and physical) were examined using data from individuals ages 50 and over from all three waves of the Americans' Changing Lives study (N = 1,911), and different patterns of change were found. Individual growth curve modeling suggested that while no change occurred over time on average within domains, significant individual differences were found in these patterns across all domains. Limitations in physical functioning and depressive symptoms predicted lower participation across domains, but other predictors including age, race, and gender made a difference. Older age only predicted decreases in the physical domain.     

Cultural Consonance in Leisure,Leisure Satisfaction,Life Satisfaction,and Self-Rated Health in Urban Taiwan

The purpose of this study threefold: to determine whether a shared cultural model of the importance of a set of leisure activities to a good leisure life existed in urban Taiwan, the degree to which cultural consonance in leisure mediates the relationship between leisure constraints and leisure satisfaction, and the degree to which leisure satisfaction affects life satisfaction and self-rated health. Results indicate that a cultural model of the importance of leisure activities to a good leisure life existed among sample members. Second, higher levels of self-reported participation in leisure activities that are culturally agreed upon as more important for a good leisure life are more strongly associated with leisure satisfaction than are activities culturally agreed upon as less important. Finally, leisure satisfaction strongly predicts both life satisfaction and self-rated health.     

“When You See Nature,Nature Give You Something Inside”: The Role of Nature-based Leisure in Fostering Refugee Well-being in Canada

This study investigated the impacts of nature-based leisure on the well-being of refugees in Canada. For this interpretive study we used semi-structured interviews and photo-elicitation to explore four refugees' experiences of a two-day winter camping experience in northern Alberta and how it might foster their well-being. Participants, from three African countries, and Iran, welcomed an opportunity to be away in a natural setting, to connect with others, to learn new activities, involve their families, and as a distraction from their daily lives. Refugees acknowledged the welcoming efforts of the social services and parks agencies in bolstering their confidence and well-being. Refugees' experiences underscored both the importance of access to nature-based leisure in mitigating stress, and host societies' attitudes toward newcomers in fostering their well-being. Our findings suggest that developing nature-based leisure opportunities for refugees may promote their well-being and sense of belonging.     

The (In)Visibility of Grandparents in Family Leisure Research: A Call for Expanded Conceptualizations of “Family”

ABSTRACT

The continued focus on the individual as a unit of analysis, along with the privileging of the nuclear family over the past two decades of family leisure scholarship, has rendered grandparents virtually invisible in family leisure scholarship. In this commentary, I examine the position of grandparents in leisure research and suggest that the implicit acceptance of the status quo has been detrimental to the state of family leisure research. Drawing on literature from both leisure studies and family relations, I assert a more nuanced understanding of the complexities of diverse family forms is vital to the progression of family leisure scholarship.     

Serious Leisure and Recreation Specialization: An Uneasy Marriage

A case is made to wed research on serious leisure and recreation specialization. Before such a marriage can occur, the strengths and differences of the two perspectives must be examined. In this article, four important contributions of the recreation specialization are put forward that will further our understanding of serious leisure and intense forms of leisure. These are (1) there is diversity among participants involved in the same leisure activity, (2) we can quantify recreation specialization and serious leisure, (3) there are gradations of seriousness and specialization, and (4) there are practical applications of understanding that participants vary along a specialization continuum.