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A collaborative small convenience sample survey of 26 adults with Type 2 Diabetes found increased minutes of leisure-time physical activity (LTPA) when the following were experienced within LTPA: a sense of connection/belonging with individuals/groups, a sense of connection/belonging within the self, attributes that come from feeling a sense of connection/belonging with individuals/groups (e.g., feeling loved), a sense of building one's identity, control/power over one's self and things, competence/mastery, positive emotions of escalation (e.g., enjoyment), positive emotions of well-being (e.g., feeling self-satisfied), hope/optimism, and a continuation of one's personal growth and development. Systemically structured leisure counseling, provided by a recreational therapist (RT) early in the disease process, aimed at identifying, exploring, and enhancing the experience of such personal meanings in LTPA may prove helpful in diabetes management. Suggestions for the inclusion of RT as a collaborative member are provided to highlight our possible role in preventative medicine for chronic disease management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There has been limited attention to subjective well-being (SWB) among people with schizophrenia with even less attention to the emotional element of SWB. The purpose of this study was to identify if leisure activity was significantly associated with emotional experience among people with schizophrenia spectrum disorders (SSD). Forty-five adults with SSD were recruited from two psychiatric day-treatment programs for participation in this study. Experience sampling method (ESM) was used to collect data on self-reported activities that were subsequently coded into active/sedentary and leisure/non-leisure. ESM was also used to collect self-reported positive and negative emotional experience occurring simultaneously with activities. Hierarchical linear modeling was used to analyze the relationship of activity (i.e., active/sedentary, leisure/non-leisure) to positive and negative emotional experience. Findings indicated that the majority of activity was sedentary and a large majority of leisure activity was sedentary. Physically active leisure was significantly associated with lower negative emotion; however, no association was found-with activity and positive emotion. Although the findings of this study were not uniformly supportive, there is reason to advocate for the inclusion of leisure-time physical activity in psychiatric rehabilitation for people with SSD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The personality trait self-control has been associated with various adaptive outcomes. The objective of this cross-sectional study was to explore whether self-control is associated with self-reported leisure time physical activity (LTPA), Body Mass Index (BMI), muscle-fitness and aerobic fitness among young men. Participants (482 male conscripts; age M = 20) completed a questionnaire and participated in anthropometric measurements in the DefenceNutri Study, and took standard aerobic fitness and muscle fitness tests as part of their military training. Self-control was found to have a positive association with LTPA, aerobic fitness, and muscle fitness, and a negative association with BMI. Self-control predicted aerobic and muscular fitness regardless of BMI, and remained a significant and independent predictor of aerobic fitness (R2adj. =.28, β =.10, p <.05), but not muscle fitness, when LTPA and BMI were controlled for. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this essay, we examine the assumptions underlying natural science, social science, and the humanities. More specifically, we suggest that social science in general and leisure science in particular be guided by a different set of assumptions than those guiding natural science and the humanities. Drawing on the Aristotelian idea of phronesis, we propose that value rationality more so than instrumental rationality guide social scientific inquiry, and that social science in general, and leisure science in particular, be viewed as a bridge between natural science and the humanities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The research is clear that play, recreation, and leisure are important to well-being and a high quality of life. But what would a family say about play? What would a child with a disability say about play and leisure in his life? This article presents an interesting dialogue with Austin, a child with autism, his older sister, Karsyn, and his mother, Darleen. The interview gives a rare insight into what matters to Austin and his family and how they have, as a unit, adapted their lives to allow Austin to flourish as a young person. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on the study which aims to examine the basic psychological needs satisfaction in explaining the relationship between leisure-time physical activity (LTPA) and eudaimonic well being (EWB) in people diagnosed with osteoporosis. The participants with osteoporosis have reported their demographic and health status, leisure-time physical activity, and psychological needs. The results show that the effects of perceived competence and relatedness on the LTPA-EWB was comparable.

An analysis of psychological well-being (self-esteem and subjective vitality) of 639 Spanish university students was performed, while accounting for the amount of leisure-time physical activity. The Spanish versions of the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale and Subjective Vitality Scale were employed. Participants were divided into four groups (Low, Moderate, High, and Very high) depending on estimation of energy expenditure in leisure-time physical activity. Men and women having higher physical activity rated higher mean subjective vitality; however, differences in self-esteem were observed only in men, specifically between Very high and the other physical activity groups. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Scand J Caring Sci; 2011; 25; 567-574 Embedded spirituality: gardening in daily life and stressful life experiences Background: There is a limited body of research examining the relationship between spirituality and leisure, or the impact of leisure in the context of daily life, and life with stressful events. Aim: To examine the meaning of gardens and gardening across different life experiences using hermeneutic phenomenology to focus on the lived experience of leisure gardening. Methods: Most participants were interviewed once in each season over a 1 year period usually in their home. There were 42 participants (27 women and 15 men) in this study. Fifteen individuals had been diagnosed with cancer and were in varying stages of diagnosis and treatment. Three people had a chronic and progressive disease. Four women were grieving the death of their spouse. Participants ranged in age from 32 to 80 years. Results: In this paper, we focus on the spirituality-related themes in this study: spirituality as connectedness; spirituality as an expression of inner being; the garden as a spiritual place and gardening as spiritual activity; gardening as a spiritual journey; and, stewardship. Participants with religious views saw their garden as an extension of their spirituality and a confirmation of their beliefs. Participants with secular or sacred views of spirituality that was not related to any religious beliefs were more likely to embed their spirituality in their relationship with nature as manifested in their garden. Conclusion: This study extends current theory regarding leisure and its contribution to meaning focused coping, and spirituality as a significant component of leisure in living with stressful health and life events. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this research is to study depression in institutionalized older people in the district of Braganca. The aims are to determine the prevalence of depression and assess the existence of some known risk factors for its appearance and maintenance. The participants were 186 elderly residents in 14 residential homes in the district of Braganca. Instruments used were the Mini Mental State Examination, the Geriatric Depression Scale and the Barthel index. To estimate the adjustment to institutional status and importance given to participation in leisure activities, the Index of Adaptation (α = 0.61) and the Index of Activity and Recreation (α = 0.63) were created. The feeling of loneliness was self-reported by participants. A high prevalence rate of depression (47%) was observed. Depression was more prevalent among women (51%) than men (40%). Depression was also related to lower cognitive levels, lower adjustments to institutional life, reduced participation in leisure activities, higher rates of loneliness and greater dependency in activities of daily living. In summary, almost half of the older people studied in the district of Braganca were depressed. Depression in the institutional context was predicted by loneliness, less importance given to leisure activities and regarding the male or female condition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Survey data show that Russians relegate free time and leisure activity to secondary status compared to work, and free time faces the threat of becoming devalued and losing its importance as a life value. At the same time, in the structure of Russians' leisure activities there is an ongoing tendency for leisure to become simpler, for active types of leisure to be reduced. This tendency is strengthened by the economic crisis, when spending on leisure activity is the first to be cut back in family budgets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The quality of life is determined with objective factors and also with subjective perception of factors which influence human life. Leisure activities play a very important role in subjective well-being because they provide opportunities to meet life values and needs. Through participation in leisure activities people build social relationships, feel positive emotions, acquire additional skills and knowledge, and therefore improve their quality of life. In this report we will explore how leisure activities improve subjective well-being. We will try to distinguish among different types of leisure activities and find those which contribute more to the subjective well-being. Particularly, we will explore which leisure activities contribute to the subjective well-being of women and men of different age. Our study is based on data from a representative sample of Croatian citizens (N = 4,000), who estimated their subjective well-being and participation in various leisure activities. First, we will describe the subjective well-being of various groups of people who differ by gender and age. Afterward, we will identify important leisure activities which determine subjective well-being across age and gender groups. Overall, our results show that engagement in leisure activities contributes to subjective well being, while the pattern of important leisure activities somewhat varies across different age and gender groups. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

SYNOPOSIS Objective. The authors aimed to determine whether mothers' knowledge of what is upsetting and what is comforting to their children predicts their children's coping, empathy, and concern for others. Design. One hundred forty 10- to 12-year-old children were asked to identify distressing events as well as what they found comforting, and their mothers were asked to say how they thought their children would respond. Children were assessed for coping and empathy, and teachers were asked to report on children's prosocial behavior in the classroom. Results. Mothers' accuracy about what distressed their children predicted the children's coping and, to an extent, their empathy. Accuracy about comforting interventions predicted coping and prosocial behavior for children prone to distress. Conclusion. Mothers' knowledge of how their children think and feel makes it easier for them to socialize their children effectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista Virtual Universidad Católica del Norte is the property of Revista Virtual Universidad Catolica del Norte and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This study adds to research on the beneficial effects of vacation to employees' well-being and on the fade-out of these effects. One hundred and thirty-one teachers completed questionnaires one time before and three times after vacationing. Results indicated that teachers' work engagement significantly increased and teachers' burnout significantly decreased after vacation. However, these beneficial effects faded out within one month. Applying hierarchical regression analyses, we investigated the fade-out of vacation effects in detail. In line with the Job Demands-Resources model, job demands after vacation sped up the fade-out of beneficial effects. Additionally, leisure time relaxation experiences after vacation delayed the fade-out of beneficial effects. We conclude that reducing job demands and ensuring leisure time relaxation can prolong relief from vacation. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigated the relationship between activities during respite time and depressive symptoms in family caregivers (N = 74) of older adults receiving in-home respite services. Contrary to prior research, demographic contextual variables (caregiver gender, household income, and dyad relationship) and care recipient problems (behavioral dysfunction and functional impairment) were not associated with caregiver depressive symptoms, nor was total minutes engaged in discretionary activities during respite. Self-reported depressive symptomatology in family caregivers was significantly and inversely related to both past service usage and total minutes of chore time completed on a typical home-based respite day. Implications for research in this area and service delivery are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Through autoethnography, queer theory and edgework, I examine Wild Ginger Witchcamp, an annual five-day event where one hundred or so people gather to celebrate shared politics, spirituality and environmental concerns. I include narratives of lived experience, woven and layered into the text to illuminate the complex realities of leisure that extends beyond resisting the normative to one of the nurturing alternatives. The social health of a community depends on the community's ability to publicly affirm itself, and it is critical that a community find a way to transmit and transform its culture. Queer theory, the related constructs of heteronormativity and counterpublics, along with edgework, can help us understand the importance of communal and culturally relevant leisure particularly for individuals and communities that do not see themselves reflected in the dominant culture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The internet is an integral tool for information, communication, and entertainment among adolescents. As adolescents devote increasing amounts of time to utilizing the internet, the risk for adopting excessive and pathological internet use is inherent. The study objectives include assessing the characteristics and predictors of excessive internet use and evaluating the prevalence of pathological internet use among Greek adolescents. A cross-sectional study design was applied to this effect. The study population (n = 897) consisted of a random sample of adolescents residing in Athens, Greece. Self-completed questionnaires, pertaining to internet access characteristics and Young's Internet Addiction Scale (YIAS) score, were applied in order to investigate the study objectives. The multivariate regression analysis indicated that the most significant predictors of overall internet use included accessing the internet via one's own home portal and for the purpose of social interaction. Internet access via the school environment was a significant deterrent among low (1-3 h/week) internet users, while access via internet cafés was a significant predictor for high (11-20 h/week) internet users. Moreover, accessing the internet for the purposes of game playing was the most significant predictor for excessive (>20 h/week) internet use. The prevalence of borderline internet use among the study population was 12.8%, while 1.00% reported addictive internet use. Also, 10.4% of male excessive internet users reported addictive internet use (p < 0.0001). In conclusion, excessive internet use is predicted solely by the location of internet access (own home portal) and the scope of internet use (i.e., sites relating to socialization and game playing) and may lead to internet addiction, particularly among male adolescents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Objective: The aim of this study was to examine and test the possible directions of the relationships between leisure-time physical activity and depressed mood. Method: A 10-year longitudinal study with a sample of 924 adolescents was conducted, and data were collected 8 times from the age of 13 years to the age of 23 years. The data were analysed using multivariate latent curve modelling. Results: Leisure-time physical activity and depressed mood covary inversely through adolescence. However, baseline levels of leisure-time physical activity do not predict later changes in depressed mood, and baseline levels of depressed mood do not predict later changes in leisure-time physical activity. Conclusion: Changes in leisure-time physical activity and depressed mood are related, but the results do not provide support for the common assumption that a high early level of physical activity protects against later depressed mood, nor that a high early level of depressed mood acts as a barrier for later physical activity. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

This paper assesses whether, in an age of social and cultural globalisation, place-specific cultural differences continue to exist between domestic Australian and international Asian university students, resulting in divergent leisure patterns among these populations. The paper is based on a survey of the leisure behaviour of Australian, Japanese, Taiwanese, Chinese, Malaysian, Korean, and Singaporean students enrolled at the University of Queensland, Australia. A total of 126 domestic students and 191 international students took part in the study. Analysis of the data shows there are some significant differences and similarities in the leisure behaviour of the students from the seven nationalities selected. These results indicate the existence of place-specific, nationally based cultures that influence leisure behaviour even when people are away from their home country. In addition, a student culture that cuts across national boundaries, creating behavioural similarities between different nationalities in the process, appears to exist. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents the study which sought to examine the association between the physical activity during leisure time on the incidence of mental disorder in university graduates in Spain. Researchers conducted the baseline assessment in a cohort of graduates which included a validated questionnaire on physical activity during leisure time and sedentary activities, and classified the subject of the study as an incident case of mental disorder if he or she reported a physician diagnosis of depression, anxiety or stress. Results showed that subjects with the highest level of the sedentary index had an increased risk of mental disorder.

There is relatively little evidence available about how leisure involvement changes with the death of a spouse and even less about how leisure activity is associated with the health and well-being of widows during this transition. Using data from the Americans Changing Lives (ACL) dataset, this study of 154 widows investigated change in leisure involvement during the transition to widowhood and examined the relationship between leisure activity reduction and widows' well-being. Results indicated a majority of widows reduced their involvement in leisure activity. Path models revealed that depressive symptoms and recovery from spousal loss were predictors of activity reduction, providing more support for the causal relationship of well-being influencing activity involvement than for activity influencing well-being. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: This study examined the relationship between spring break vacation and changes in alcohol consumption among college students. Analyses also examined the effects of spring break activity (vacationing with friends, visiting parents, staying in college town, etc.) and selection (i.e., whether heavy drinkers are more likely to vacation with friends) on the spring break/alcohol consumption relationship.Method: Participants were 3,720 students (46% male; 90% white; mean age = 17.96) at a large midwestern university. Students were contacted during the fall and spring of their freshman, sophomore, and junior years and were asked to complete online surveys assessing (1) their typical alcohol use, (2) their alcohol use during spring break week, and (3) the activities they engaged in during spring break week.Results: Students who vacationed with friends during spring break dramatically increased their alcohol use. In contrast, students who stayed home or vacationed with parents during spring break were at low risk for excessive alcohol use.Conclusions: Findings highlight the need for targeted drinking interventions geared specifically toward students taking trips with friends. Findings also highlight the need for further research into both person and environmental variables that predict increases in drinking during spring break. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Society & Leisure / Loisir & Société is the property of Taylor & Francis Ltd and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Only travel and leisure motives with some degree of stability are likely to contribute to predictions of travel choice or behavior. Eight motive scales, based on previous research and consultations with a travel company, were used in a survey of outbound tourists from Norway (n = 243). Their stability was tested in a quasi-experimental pre/post design. Respondents' trip abroad was used as the ‘experimental treatment,’ and postintervention measurements were taken at two different points in time: either after 1 week or after 2 months. Internal consistency proved satisfactory for seven out of eight motive scales tested. Confirmatory factor analysis also lends some support to the single-scale factor models. All seven scales show satisfactory test-retest reliability. A small, but statistically significant, difference between pre- and posttravel motives emerged in the powerful repeated-measurements analysis. A difference of this magnitude is not likely to have any practical significance, however. The interval difference between post- and premeasurements (1 week vs. 2 months) had no significant effect. The travel motives measured in the study thus may be trusted to be relatively lasting and stable phenomena. For the use of travel motives for predicting travel choices and behavior, this is a necessary, although insufficient, precondition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the present study we examined the associations between beliefs of mastery and 2 important kinds of productive activities in the third age; participation in education, and volunteering. Within the broad concept of mastery beliefs, differential aspects of self-regulatory cognitions were studied, that is, self-esteem, control beliefs, effort to complete behavior, persistence in the face of adversity, and willingness to initiate behavior. Effects of these aspects on carrying out activities were investigated and controlled for the impact of some situational and demographic factors. Findings suggest that a general sense of mastery, as reflected in self-esteem and control beliefs, is not a precondition for study and volunteering work in the third age. However, special components of self-efficacy turned out to play a part. Willingness to initiate behavior emerged as a strong predictor for taking on educational activities, as was persistence in the face of adversity for being active as a volunteer. In the discussion, possibilities were looked at for how better to match productive activities in later life to personal dispositions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines the ways in which climbers negotiate their leisure activity within a social context. It is suggested that the wider social context is one of rationalized society, whereby efficiency and growth have become ends in themselves. Although climbing is depicted as a 'free area' in which climbers attempt to achieve a relative freedom from this society, the encroachment of rationalized society into the activity means that climbers find themselves both divided and besieged. The response of a group of traditional climbers in Australia has been to develop some symbolic behaviours that signify resistance to mainstream society. However, these behaviours have themselves become rigid and oppressive, and their chief protagonists as alienating as the rationalized society that they wish to resist. Whether this society emerges as a 'metaphor of resistance' or as a 'metanarrative of oppression' is dependant upon its members retaining their capacity as moral subjects, rather than existing in unquestioning obedience to these rules. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Negative life events, such as the unexpected loss of a loved one, a disabling accident or a natural disaster, are inevitably distressing and disruptive. Coping with and recovering from such events generally requires a variety of personal and social resources. Previous research on leisure and coping has suggested that leisure orientations and relationships can be important in reducing the likelihood that stress becomes debilitating in some way. But the results of that work are equivocal and generally do not distinguish leisure resources that make events less stressful from those that are employed in coping with stressful events after they occur. This analysis examines the leisure-coping literature as well as recent work on the dynamics of coping and the impact of pleasant events and concludes in identifying four distinguishable functions of leisure that relate to self-protection, self-restoration, and personal transformation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Presents a study which described the development and administration of a measure to assess the participation of adolescents in leisure activities. Method; Results; Discussion.

Despite a substantial amount of leisure research, little is known about the leisure activity patterns and satisfaction of couples and their influence, if any, on relationship satisfaction. Further, satisfaction and leisure activity research has been limited to married dyads and has not included a range of romantic partners. Leisure research has focused primarily on individual data, and this impedes fully understanding the joint construction of leisure in a couple and its outcomes. The present research extends efforts by examining the perceptions of dyads in diverse relationships and their effect on their leisure and relationship satisfaction. The model in this study is that gender, joint leisure time, and individual leisure satisfaction affect the relationship satisfaction of both an individual and his or her partner: the partner effect model. Questionnaires self-administered to both members of romantic dyads obtained information on the variables of interest. Results indicated moderate participant leisure satisfaction and a near-significant relationship between gender and relationship satisfaction. However, the model that individual leisure satisfaction would influence both an individual and a partner's relationship satisfaction was not supported by the data. Nonetheless, dyadic research remains a rich area for conceptual and methodological advancement, and therefore subsequent research suggestions are presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Several ways in which leisure can help people cope with stress have been proposed and studied, but a comprehensive set of leisure stress-coping types or dimensions has not been identified. The purpose of this article is to propose a new conceptualization of leisure stress coping and identify different ways in which leisure may contribute to people's ability to cope with stress. The dimensions of leisure stress coping proposed (e.g., a self-determination disposition, leisure empowerment, leisure companionship, leisure palliative coping) are based on an integrative review of social psychological research and leisure research on stress and coping. As an initial attempt to explore a potential of the conceptual model, we developed new scales for measuring the dimensions of leisure stress coping. The examination of internal consistency and confirmatory factor analysis of the scales provided preliminary evidence for the scales' reliability and validity. Implications for future research regarding the conceptual model and the stress-coping scales are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Presents a study which aims to develop a short and easily used questionnaire to measure enjoyment in leisure-time physical activity. Composition of the questionnaire; Sample application of the questionnaire developed, called Groningen Enjoyment Questionnaire, to its validity and reliability.

Examines the relationship between adolescent involvement in leisure activities and occurrence of antisocial behavior in Sweden. Link of participation in highly structured leisure activities to low levels of antisocial behavior; Similarity of the results for boys and girls; Characterization of participants of low structured activities.

Investigates the leisure behavior pattern stability during the transition from adolescence to young adulthood. Impact of changing development needs on leisure behavior; Existence of potential disruption on leisure patterns; Patterns of leisure behavior.

The Jackson Personality Inventory (JPI), Holden Psychological Screening Inventory (HPSI), and the Leisure Motivation Scale (LMS) were administered to samples of 66 young offenders and 67 high school students. Significant between sample differences occurred for the HPSI Depression and Social Symptomatology scales, the JPI Responsibility and Risk Taking scales, but none of the 4 LMS scales. Statistically significant correlations were obtained for the LMS with 13 of the 15 JPI scales, with the HPSI Psychiatric, Social, and Depression Symptomatology scales, and with gender and sample. The canonical correlation redundancy index indicated that 40% of the variance in leisure motivation was accounted for by the HPSI and JPI measures. Sample and gender added 2% to the explained variance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Proposes a needs-based taxonomy of leisure activities. Indication of extent to which a particular leisure activity met different psychological needs; Paragraphs About Leisure (PAL) questionnaire; Profile reliability; Implications for practice; Insights into leisure activities; Adequacy of theory-based taxonomies.

The subject of this paper is the emotions which are aroused in sport and leisure and their significance for a full sociological understanding of sport and leisure behaviour and sport and leisure institutions. The paper deals more with sport than leisure in general and is primarily conceptual and theoretical in its focus. It advances the claim that a 'figurational' (or 'process-sociological') approach, above all Elias's theory of 'civilizing processes' (Elias, 1939; l994a), whilst by no means representing a panacea for all of sociology's current problems, does represent a means of circumventing and hopefully overcoming some of the dilemmas on the horns of which practitioners of our subject recurrently become impaled. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Investigates the relationship between attitude to leisure time and engagement in leisure activities and psychological and physical health. Positive impact of leisure activities on mental and physical health; Use of leisure counseling as a therapeutic intervention.

This article explores the provision of extraordinary hedonic experiences on commercial, multiday river rafting trips in the Colorado River basin. White water river rafting provides a dramatic illustration of some of the complex features of delivering an extraordinary experience. Multiple methods were employed over two years of data collection to articulate the lived meaning of this experience from both the guides' and the consumers' perspectives. Robust quantitative measures were de- veloped from rich qualitative data. Participant observation and interview data enriched the interpretation of quantitative results. Experiential themes of personal growth and self-renewal, "communitas," and harmony with nature are evidenced across the data; they evolve and are woven together over the course of the trip. Together they are significant in explaining overall satisfaction. There is a complex relationship between client expectations and satisfaction. The narrative of the rafting experience rather than relationships between expectations and outcomes is shown to be central to its evaluation. Implications for other services and consumption activities are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A sociocultural approach is used to explore voluntary high-risk consumption. Specifically, we examine the dynamics of individuals' motives, risk perceptions, and benefit/cost outcomes of participation in increasingly popular high-risk leisure activities such as skydiving, climbing, and BASE jumping (parachuting from fixed objects). An ethnography of a skydiving subculture provides the primary empirical data. We propose an extended dramatic model that explains both macroenvironmental and inter- and intrapersonal influences and motives for high-risk consumption. Key findings indicate (1) an evolution of motives that explains initial and continuing participation in high-risk activities and (2) a coinciding evolution of risk acculturation that leads to the normalization of risk. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Provides information on a study that examines the association of childhood play and adolescent-parent interactions with German adolescent leisure participation. Discussion on adolescent leisure activity; Risky leisure; Social-romantic leisure.

Addresses continuing concern over television's displacement of other leisure activities from both substantive and methodological perspectives. Displacement hypothesis; Methodological approaches to displacement; Results and discussion of the study.

The researchers' primary purpose was to determine which independent predictors affect the probability that physical education (PE) will be popular among teenagers who are deaf or hard of hearing; that they will consider PE important and undemanding; that they will feel comfortable with PE; and whether they will be disappointed when a PE class is canceled. Three predictors were confirmed: (a) teenagers' sports participation (competitive versus recreational versus no sports); (b) gender (boys versus girls); (c) father (participating in sports versus not participating). Sports participation significantly affected evaluation of the difficulty of PE: Teenagers who played no sports were more likely to rate PE as a demanding subject than teenagers who played a sport competitively. Additionally, sports participation significantly affected evaluation of a canceled PE class: Teenagers who played a recreational sport were less likely to be happy about a canceled class. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Discusses the abstract of the study 'Motivational Strategies of Instructors in Leisure and Health Sport Groups: A Typology Based on Cluster Anlysis,' by R. Fuchs, S. Lippke et al, published in volume 7 of 'Psychologie und Sport.'

Presents a reply to the critiques of F.H. Borgen and R.V. Davis on his work to develop a needs-based taxonomy of leisure activities. Disagreement with Borgen's suggestion that the author's work is critical of J.L. Holland's theory; Suggestion of a procedure for the development of a taxonomy using Holland's theory; Limitations of Holland's theory.

Critiques the study on the psychology of leisure by H.E.A. Tinsley and B.D. Eldredge. Development of large-scale taxonomy of leisure activities based on psychological needs; Exemplary empirical and methodological work; Lack of clarity of the conceptual and theoretical bases of their work.

Background: Urbanization and aging are global phenomena that offer unique challenges in different countries. A supportive environment plays an important role in addressing the issues of health behavioral change and health promotion (e.g., prevent chronic illnesses, promote mental health) among older adults. With the development of the socio-ecological theoretical model, studies on the impact of supportive environments on physical activity have become popular in the public health field in the EU and US. Meanwhile, very few Chinese studies have examined the relationship between built environment features and older adults' physical activity at the ecological level. The purpose of the study is to investigate how the factors part of the built environment of Nanjing's communities also influence leisure time physical activity among the elderly.Methods: Using a socio-ecological model as a theoretical framework, we conducted a cross-sectional study of 399 elderly people from 19 communities in Nanjing, China, using a one-on-one questionnaire to collect data, including participants' perceived built environment and self-reported physical activity. A multivariate linear regression method was used to analyze the factors influencing their recreational physical activity.Results: This study found that compared to older people with low average monthly income, the recreational physical activity of the elderly with average monthly incomes between 1001 and 2000 ¥ (β = 23.31, p < 0.001) and 2001 ¥ or more (β = 21.15, p < 0.001) are significantly higher. After controlling for individual covariates, street connectivity (β = 7.34, p = 0.030) and street pavement slope (β = - 7.72, p = 0.020), we found that two out of ten built environment factors indicators influence their physical activity. The importance of each influencing factor ranked from highest to lowest are monthly average income, street pavement slope, and street connectivity. Other factors were not significantly related to recreational physical activity by the elderly.Conclusions: Older adults with a high income were more likely to participate in recreational physical activity than those with a low income. In order to positively impact physical activity in older adults and ultimately improve health, policymakers and urban planners need to ensure that street connectivity and street pavement slope are factored into the design and development of the urban environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]