Motivations for Activity Participation as Predictors of Emerging Adults' Psychological Engagement in Leisure Activities

Psychological engagement has been identified as a critical factor in the potential benefits of emerging adults. leisure activity participation. Emerging adults. motivations for participation might be particularly important in predicting psychological engagement. In the present work, we report findings from a study of motivations for leisure participation and its associations with psychological engagement. In a sample of 183 undergraduate university students, we found that three of the five hypothesized motivators positively and significantly predicted greater psychological engagement. Specifically, greater psychological engagement was related to leisure participation motivated by a desire to learn and exercise skills and abilities, protect the self (for example, to alleviate guilt by helping others), and because of opportunities presented by others. favorable attitudes towards involvement.     

Coping with Chronic Stress: Leisure and Women Who Are Homeless

The present study explored if women who are homeless face chronic stress and how the women cope with living in a shelter, which could be chronic stress or part of ongoing chronic stress. The study demonstrated that women who are homeless experienced chronic stress. When the women discussed how they coped with stress, various strategies were identified with a primary strategy of being with others. The women also noted that they engaged in diversionary leisure activities to help them relax. Although diversionary activities helped the women relax, they were not identified when the women discussed coping. It could be that diversionary activities have become so much a part of the women's lifestyles that these activities unconsciously assist with coping. Thus, diversionary leisure activities are critical to coping with chronic stress, but not recognized as coping strategies. The present study suggests that researchers working in the area of stress and coping must be cognizant of the differences between event stress, traumatic stress, and chronic stress, and the various conscious and unconscious ways that people cope with chronic stress.     

Leisure,Stress, and Coping: The Sport Participation of Collegiate Student-Athletes

Research has indicated that there is a relationship between stress and participation in leisure (Caltabiano, 1995; Chalip, Thomas, & Voyle, 1992; Reich & Zautra, 1981; Strauss-Blasche, Ekmekcioglu, & Marktl, 2002; Warner-Smith & Brown, 2002; Wheeler & Frank, 1988). It has been suggested that leisure buffers or mediates stress, thereby enhancing individual health and well-being, because of the self-determination and social support that are experienced in leisure (Coleman & Iso-Ahola, 1993). However, a number of issues have been raised by the recent research, including whether or not the leisure, stress, and health relationship varies by type of leisure activity (Iwasaki & Mannell, 2000), exactly why and how leisure (or any given leisure activity) interacts with stress (Iwasaki & Mannell, 1999-2000; Kleiber, Hutchinson, & Williams, 2002), and the possibility that leisure itself could be a stressor (Iwasaki & Mannell, 2000; Iwasaki & Smale, 1998). The interpretive study reported here examined a particular leisure activity--collegiate sport--and individuals' experiences of stress because of their participation in this type of leisure. Results indicate that collegiate sport is perceived to be both a buffer and experience of stress. Results also reveal that race and gender are important in shaping collegiate athletes' experiences of stress. Support was found for the ideas that (a) stress is a transactional process (Lazarus, 1998) and (b) research approaches that allow the dynamic experience and contextualization of the personal meanings of stress and leisure to emerge are needed (Iwasaki & Smale, 1998; Kleiber et al., 2002).     

Spiritual Functions of Leisure and Spiritual Well-Being: Coping with Time Pressure

The purpose of this study was to develop a model of leisure style and spiritual well-being relationships, and the processes (spiritual functions of leisure) by which leisure can influence spiritual well-being. Also, the role of leisure in ameliorating the effects of time pressure on spiritual well-being was examined. Structural equation modeling using AMOS was employed to test direct and indirect effects models of the relationships among components of leisure style (leisure activity participation, leisure motivation, and leisure time), spiritual functions of leisure (sacrilization, repression avoidance, sense of place) and spiritual well-being (both behavioral and subjective). The model developed suggests that some components of people's leisure styles lead to certain behaviors and experiences (spiritual functions of leisure) that maintain or enhance spiritual well-being. These spiritual functions of leisure may also serve as coping strategies to ameliorate the negative influence of time pressure on spiritual well-being.