Hard-Core Leisure: A Conceptualization

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this research reflection is to describe a slice of serious leisure that we call hard-core leisure, which we define as a form of serious leisure that involves extraordinary commitment that is directed toward an “authentic” style of social world activity. Using examples from birdwatching, Civil War reenacting, and climbing, we explain how hard-core participants separate themselves from other participants in terms of what they believe are superior styles of participation and unusual degrees of effort, perseverance, and conduct. Too often, serious participants in any given leisure activity are seen as homogeneous in their attitudes and behavior. The concept of hard-core leisure makes problematic this assumption by bringing to light an extreme form of leisure participation.     

Becoming a belly dancer: gender,the life course and the beginnings of a serious leisure career

Serious leisure careers have a beginning, middle and end, yet few studies examine the beginning stage of leisure careers dominated by women. Drawing from interviews with male and female belly dancers in the USA, this study examines how people join serious leisure activities. Results show that both men and women were interested in dance, arts and history, had personal ties to belly dance, and wanted an enjoyable form of exercise to match their capabilities when they entered the world of belly dance. Unlike men, the women in this study also experienced major life transitions, such as diminishing familial responsibilities, job and school issues, moving and shifting relationships. These findings have implications for the gendered nature of serious leisure.     

Bridging the Conceptual Frameworks of Constraints Negotiation and Serious Leisure to Understand Leisure Benefit Realization

Constraints negotiation and serious leisure are two major conceptual frameworks that have developed independently to understand individuals’ leisure participation. Although discrete ideas, they are conceptually similar in light of the fact that they address individuals’ leisure pursuits to attain various desirable benefits. The most important connections between these two frameworks lie in their assertion of different challenges inherent in leisure pursuits together with the need for serious efforts to reach leisure goals. Using a sample of Wisconsin anglers, the goal of this study is to better understand individuals’ benefit realization process by jointly examining the two conceptual frameworks of constraints negotiation and serious leisure. The study results suggest that negotiation strategies or efforts, which are at the center of both perspectives, play a key role in realizing diverse beneficial outcomes and developing unique leisure identities.     

Individual and Institutional Concentration of Leisure Research in North America

The purpose of this article is to identify key characteristics of the community of leisure scholars in North America and to use patterns derived from data about publication activity as a platform for discussing the nature and implications of concentration in leisure research at the individual and institutional levels. The study uses cluster analysis to detect patterns of research and publication activity among 1785 people who were associated with leisure research in North America in the 1990s, concentrating on the slightly smaller number of people (1631) whose names were listed as authors on at least one publication in all editions of 6 research journals and 14 conference proceedings from 1990 to 1999 inclusive. The results demonstrate that leisure research in North America is concentrated at both the individual scholar and institutional levels. For example, at the individual level, less than one-fifth of authors accounted for more than two-thirds of journal articles and conference papers. The implications of these findings are discussed with reference to issues such as the critical mass of scholars and problems of disciplinary isolation detected by previous researchers.     

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.     

Adolescents’ choice and pursuit of their most important and interesting leisure activities

This study investigated the choice and pursuit of adolescents’ most important and interesting leisure activity. It is underpinned by the concept of serious leisure, recent perceptions of seriousness as a continuum and calls for incorporating contextual elements of serious activity pursuit. A questionnaire survey was administered to 832 students from 10 secondary schools in Hong Kong. Students were asked to nominate leisure activity that they regarded as most important and interesting as well as to complete an adapted version of the Serious Leisure Inventory and Measure (SLIM). Results showed the popularity of sports and performance and graphic arts activities and of psychological reasons for activity choice. There were variations in activity choice between boys and girls and across schools as well as across levels of seriousness in activity pursuit. The study adds to the scant knowledge of adolescents’ serious leisure and enhances understanding of motives for and meanings of serious engagement.     

‘Real Ale’ Enthusiasts,Serious Leisure and the Costs of Getting ‘Too Serious’ About Beer

The article uses the concept of serious leisure to explain the leisure commitments made by members of the British consumer campaign group the Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) and that of Real Ale enthusiasts in general. Drawing on in-depth qualitative research including interviews with CAMRA branch members and staff, the article demonstrates that beer appreciation can be understood as a serious rather than a casual leisure activity. While many of the benefits to participation typical of serious leisure activities are identified, so are the numerous “costs” involved. Beyond costs relating to money, time, obligation, and organizational conflicts, the article suggests that Real Ale enthusiasts are at times marginalized by wider cultural stereotypes positioning them as obsessive and snobbish. The article concludes with discussion of how the concept of the cultural omnivore might explain how serious leisure practitioners are often marginalized because of their specialism in a single field rather than many.     

The lived experience of London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games volunteers: a serious leisure perspective

Along with other sporting mega-events, the Olympic Games, in all its versions, makes extensive use of volunteers. The 70,000 London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic volunteers, for example, played a vital role in the delivery of the event. Stebbins’ theoretical perspective of serious leisure includes consideration of volunteering and there are calls for its further empirical evaluation. This study, therefore, uses a qualitative study of the lived experience of London 2012 volunteers to test the relevance of the serious leisure framework to Olympic volunteering. The data are drawn from the reflective diaries of 20 participants who volunteered in a variety of roles during London 2012. It is concluded that all of the qualities of serious leisure are identifiable to various extents within the experiences of the London 2012 volunteers. This finding will help Olympic and other sporting mega-event managers to understand and improve the experiences of their volunteers. Recommendations are also made, in the light of the findings, for the further refinement of the serious leisure perspective. Particular attention is paid to highlighting how the findings might contribute to recent debates around whether sporting mega-event volunteering is best explained by the serious leisure quality of career volunteering, or by the serious leisure associated concept of project-based leisure, or alternatively by the competing term of episodic volunteering.     

Serious leisure and depression in older adults: a study of pickleball players

Depression rates among older adults have been increasing. Moreover, older adults experiencing depression also have to contend with increased healthcare costs. Depression is commonly regarded as an indicator of well-being, and a number of studies have examined the protective factors related to depression in older adults. While the literature has shown that engaging in serious leisure is associated with well-being of older adults, the relationship between depression and serious leisure has not been examined. This study explores the relationship between depression, serious leisure, optimism, and social integration. A total of 153 older adults competing in pickleball tournaments participated in this study. The results revealed that serious leisure and depression were inversely related, which implies that commitment to serious leisure is associated with lower levels of depression in older adults. Further analysis correlating the qualities of serious leisure with depression revealed that career progression and career contingencies were associated with depression. Given the importance of career development among most pickleball participants, we suggest that the unique contribution of career progress and career contingencies on depression is plausible. This study builds on previous research in this field and suggests that serious leisure is important for the well-being of older adults.     

The Contribution of Leisure Participation and Leisure Satisfaction to Stress-Related Growth

This study examined the contribution of leisure participation and leisure satisfaction on the experience of stress-related growth (SRG). Some types of leisure activity may be beneficial for SRG under certain circumstances. In addition, leisure satisfaction may be positively related to the stress-related growth experience. The participants of this study were 318 undergraduate students at an eastern Canadian university. The results indicated that frequent participation in civic activities and leisure satisfaction were statistically significant predictors of SRG. The findings in this study provided further evidence that positive leisure experiences and specific types of leisure activity not only help people cope with various stresses, but also facilitate growth-related changes.     

Costs and Perseverance in Serious Leisure Careers

Few studies have explored the impacts of costs on serious leisure careers. This article presents a case study of amateur athletes encountering a significant cost—cancellation of the 2012 Ironman New Zealand triathlon—and how they persevered despite this cost. Through a phenomenological research design incorporating qualitative interviews with 14 amateur triathletes, grounded theory analysis revealed that despite encountering a significant cost, athletes remained committed to their serious leisure careers. Athletes acknowledged and accepted the inherent risk of cancellation associated with outdoor sports events. Their experiences stimulated deployment of cognitive and behavioral strategies aimed at rationalizing or mitigating risk. This article contributes three theoretical propositions regarding costs encountered by serious leisure amateurs, how they persevere around costs, and concomitant impacts on serious leisure career trajectories.     

Rugby Union among middle-aged American men: an exploration

Although rugby union, a full-contact sport, is usually considered as a leisure activity in the domain of young people, the motivations and effects of rugby union played by middle-aged men are not clear. The purpose of this study is to examine the motivations and participation effects of middle-aged American men participating in rugby in the USA. This study concentrates on rugby union (hereinafter referred to as rugby) as opposed to rugby league. Data were collected through in-depth interviews during an international amateur masters’ tournament. A total of 14 amateur rugby players with ages ranging from 35 to 52 were interviewed. This study found that the motivations for rugby participation were making friends, the love of rugby and self-actualisation. The participation effects of rugby were a long-term commitment, skill improvement and cultural awareness. Moreover, these findings on the motivations and effects of rugby help support the conclusion that this sport among the middle-aged group can be considered as a serious leisure activity.     

Pulling the Pin on Active Outdoor Leisure: Building an Understanding of Leisure Abandonment from the Narratives of Outdoor Recreationists

The study draws upon the leisure narratives of a sample of outdoor recreationists who had abandoned their chosen activity of tramping (hiking), freshwater angling, mountaineering, or hunting. Abandonment, even when only temporary, was a traumatic experience for study participants associated with feelings of loss and guilt. The distinction between participation and abandonment is not entirely clear. Abandonment is complex and may be short-lived, longer-lasting, or permanent. It is also multidimensional. While it is obviously displayed by a physical abstention or exclusion from the activity, for many participants this was merely the outward manifestation of abandonment, and they retained their inner identities as participants. Sometimes physical involvement in the activity was substituted by a more cerebral, social, or institutional involvement. The study supports and builds upon Stebbins's (2008) typology of abandonment and poses the notion that multiple antecedents can be operative for any one abandonment experience.     

Serious leisure profiles and well-being of older Korean adults

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between different levels of serious leisure qualities and the happiness, health perceptions, and life satisfaction of older Korean adults who are members of community-based, sports clubs. A cluster analysis was used in order to examine patterns of serious leisure qualities (e.g. perseverance, significant effort, career development, identification and unique ethos). The core devotees who identified higher levels of serious leisure qualities reported experiencing higher levels of happiness, health perceptions, and life satisfaction when compared to the moderate devotees. The results of this study suggest that serious leisure serves as a catalyst for health and well-being which can, in turn, contribute to successful ageing.     

Serious leisure among older gardeners in Australia

Activities such as gardening are fast becoming acknowledged as a much desired health management strategy in later life. However, few studies have examined gardening as a serious leisure pursuit. The aim of this study was to apply the concept of serious leisure to the context of leisure gardening by older adults in Australia. Casual, participant and devotee gardeners were compared with respect to the relative importance of the characteristics of serious leisure, using self-administered questionnaires (n = 514). Findings indicated that characteristics of serious leisure varied significantly across the three groups. The most powerful discriminating characteristics were Identity, Unique Ethos and Significant Effort; with Identity particularly important for devotee gardeners. The deeper the level of engagement, the more gardening was perceived as contributing to overall life satisfaction. Findings indicated that gardening could be a serious leisure pursuit that assists in the development of a positive leisure identity and contributes to a more mobile and active life for older adults.     

Self-Transformation in Go Games: An Autoethnographic Study of a Serious Leisure Pursuit

ABSTRACT

This article combines both analytical and evocative autoethnographic study of Go to illuminate Confucian self-transformation and to contribute to Robert Stebbins's conceptions of serious leisure. As an analytical autoethnographic study, this article interweaves the author's personal experiences of playing Go with theoretical discussions. The author argues that whereas Stebbins's analysis of durable benefits from serious leisure is individualist, Confucian self-transformation encourages a relationalist approach and that the latter approach could be a remedy for the shortcomings of the former one. As for the evocative part of this article, the author uses some devices of fictional writing to tell a lifelike story of an unforgettable Go game. This story invites readers to put themselves in the author's situations, to taste the sweet fruit of the author's serious leisure pursuit, and to reflect on their own leisure experiences.     

世界休闲之都——21世纪杭州城市形象定位

本文根据休闲产业的概况、休闲产业对社会和经济的巨大作用以及良好的发展前景 ,从区位条件、休闲资源、历史文化、经济发展等五个方面论证杭州是世界上最适合休闲的城市之一     

European leisure studies at the crossroads? A history of leisure research in Europe

In this contribution, a generalized picture is given of the history of leisure research in Europe. It is based on a comparative study of the history of leisure research in six European countries: Spain, Poland, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom (Mommaas, Van der Poel, Bramham, & Henry, 1996a). Across Europe, leisure research has been dominated by sociological perspectives and concerns. Sociology has very much acted as a mediator of collective, public concerns, dealing with issues of enlightenment/civilization and cultural participation/welfare. However, from the late 1970s onward, the collective, educational project of free time has lost much of its former significance. On one side, there is now much more academic attention to issues of time, consumption, play, and pleasure. However, at the same time, these issues have become disconnected from former collective concerns of leisure and/or free time. This leads to two interrelated questions: Are leisure studies still in need of a unifying project of leisure? and If so, what should such a project look like?     

How Do Playful People Play? Gendered and Racial Leisure Perspectives,Motives, and Preferences of College Students

Playfulness is an aspect of personality that predisposes individuals to reframe boring situations into more amusing ones for themselves. This study extends knowledge about the playfulness construct by contrasting college students who were high or low in playfulness relative to the activity preferences they make, the motives they have, and their perspectives on their leisure time. Significant differences were found in perspectives and motives but not in activity preferences, leading to the conclusion that playfulness relates more to how individuals view their leisure and what they seek than in what they do. Only minor differences due to gender or race were observed.     

Governing Working Bodies Through Leisure

This paper focuses on what appears to represent the consummate extension and blurring of distinctions between work and leisure, with employers providing some form of leisure opportunities for their employees at, or associated with, the workplace. Empirically, the paper draws upon investigations undertaken with three Scottish-based case study organizations conducted from 1999 to 2001. The results showed that healthy leisure forms are central to contemporary active leisure initiatives at work, but that the docile assimilation of these messages is neither universal nor without contestation.