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Copyright of Sociology of Sport Journal is the property of Human Kinetics Publishers, Inc. 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.)

Public park and recreation settings are important environments for health promotion and public park and recreation organizations are increasingly recognized for contributing positively to community health and disease prevention. Researchers typically focus on the influence of the built environment on health and less on the social environment, which have crucial implications for health and well-being. Exploring parks and recreation settings as social environments in which individuals engage in leisure jointly with others can assist managers in better understanding individual leisure behaviors and health outcomes. Community centers represent meaningful spaces that facilitate social interaction through their diversity of programming and services. The social relationships that arise from these interactions in leisure settings can act as a source of health and well-being for users. The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore the social relationships at a county-owned community center in the southeastern United States, and their implications for health and well-being. This study demonstrated a valuable role of community centers beyond opportunities for physical activity. Through opportunities for bonding, bridging, and linking social capital that the community center afforded through their programs and services, users had access to emotional support, as well as information and resources that was not available to them in other domains of their life. It is important for practitioners to consider the valuable contribution that relationship building can have to a user's health and well-being when designing, marketing, and evaluating programs and events. A substantial contribution to the community center user's health and well-being was access to information, resources, and services which were a result of partnerships and collaborations that the community center had with local organizations and institutions. It would be advantageous for community centers to collaborate with agencies that can assist visitors in other domains of life (e.g., housing, employment, family) that can indirectly impact the welfare of users. This is especially relevant for community centers that serve disadvantaged populations (i.e., low income, elderly) that may not have the knowledge or ability to access these types of services themselves. However, as the findings indicate, it is also important to recognize that collaborations and partnerships can potentially have negative consequences for users. Although collaborations are imperative to providing services, users can be skeptical to outside organizations and have a negative impact on participation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Facta Universitatis: Series Physical Education & Sport is the property of Facta Universitatis, Series Physical Education & Sport 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.)

Many feel that individuals with visual impairments are limited in their ability to participate in many sports including combative sports. However, athletes with visual impairments have competed in combatives including [...]

This investigation considers the participation of children, adolescents and young adults in nature-based recreation. We draw upon the recreation narratives of forty-seven adult recreationists in the activities of tramping, angling, hunting and mountaineering, obtained from in-depth interviews. In particular, the study considers the transitions from childhood through adolescence to young adulthood, and examines how our participants maintained their participation, or alternatively, disengaged from their activity over this period. The paper provides empirical support for the role of family, and early exposure to nature based recreation in fostering enduring participation. Failing this, the role of school, club and outdoor organizational support and mentoring, right through to tertiary study was highlighted. We also identify a critical role for unstructured outdoor play for young children in nature. The paper discusses challenges for this, and for mentoring, in both formal and informal senses, as pathways into nature-based recreation in an increasingly risk averse society. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Students with physical disabilities at higher education institutions are often excluded from recreational activities due to lack of appropriate inclusive integration programmes. This study systematically reviewed literature that identified recreational patterns and preferences of students with physical disabilities to provide recommendations for their recreational programmes. Articles were reviewed using Ebscohost (Medline, CINAHL, PsyArticles, Academic Search Complete), LANCET, Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ), Project Muse, BioMed Central Journal, JSTOR, Google Scholar and Sports Discus databases for the period 1997 to 2014. Articles extracted comprised qualitative, quantitative and mixed method studies that met level three on the JBI level of evidence scale. Articles that were favourably rated for methodological quality by two reviewers were included. The articles were methodologically appraised using a modified CASP instrument. A total number of 426 821 articles were identified, of which 90 were selected for further investigation whilst 69 were excluded after the first review and a further three following evaluation of methodological quality. Thus, 18 articles were included. There was a lack of recreational programmes available for students with physical disabilities. Opportunities for recreation for disabled students should be provided. There was a need for suitable holistic campus recreational programmes at universities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Transformations in Business & Economics is the property of Vilnius University 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.)

Steroid use is only now being recognized as a national epidemic. Although American athletes have been using anabolic steroids since the 1950s, it was not until the 1980s that athletic governing bodies began to monitor and sanction illegal supplementation. It is easier to understand why paid, professional athletes might partake in steroid use; keeping up with the competition, sustaining or improving abilities, salary incentives and endorsements based on performance are but a few reasons. But it is more difficult to understand why adult nonprofessional athletes would eagerly flout the law and put their health at risk. Academic research into steroid use has largely ignored this populous group, instead focusing on professional, college or high school/ adolescent athletes. Through semi-structured interviews with 37 recreational steroid users, this paper seeks to fill that void by exploring their motivations, knowledge, and attitudes toward illegal anabolic steroids. The findings are discussed in terms of their policy implications.

In the industrializing United States of a century ago, play and recreation became commodities--even on Sunday. This development challenged a Christian America that held the entire Sabbath sacred. Mass-market toys, [...]

Lake Hume is a significant water storage located at the headwaters of the River Murray. It provides irrigation water, urban water supplies, flood mitigation and recreational benefits to a large and economically significant region. Water quality in Lake Hume has recently been the subject of investigation in response to continued evidence of eutrophication, in the form of blue-green algal blooms. This article reports the results of estimates of the recreational values of visitors to Lake Hume under different water quality and water level scenarios using the contingent travel cost method. Accordingly, the article provides insights into the economic relationship between water quality in Lake Hume and the recreational activities undertaken on and near the lake. The study found recreational values of about $3 million per annum when the lake is near capacity, and the threat of algal contamination is low. A diminution of the water level to about half reduces the value of these benefits by about a third, as does a single incidence of blue-green algae. Keywords: Lake Hume, water quality, non-market valuation, contingent travel cost method

The study investigated constraints faced by University of Venda students in sport and recreation participation. A cross sectional study was conducted with 400 registered full-time students randomly sampled from different faculties within the University of Venda. Self-administered close-ended questionnaires validated using a hierarchical model of understanding leisure constraints guided the data collection process. Descriptive statistics (frequency and percentages) were used to analyse data. The major findings indicated that intrapersonal and structural constraints were ranked highest based on the response rate (percentages). Even though interpersonal constraints were ranked low, they do have less influence on student participation in sport and recreation. The study concludes that intrapersonal and structural constraints are dominant in sport and recreation participation among University of Venda students. It recommends strategies to overcome the constraints in sport and recreation participation at the University. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Youth face a number of obstacles during adolescence that can make achieving a healthy trajectory into adulthood challenging. An abundance of literature indicates that the ability to effectively self-regulate is an important factor that helps youth navigate some of these challenges and is predictive of positive development (Dahl, 2004; Masten, 2004). Self-regulation is characterized by the ability to plan, guide, and monitor one's thoughts, feelings, behavior, and motivation to achieve self-set goals (Zimmerman, 2000). Although evidence shows that a number of youth contexts (family, school, athletics, etc.) can promote young people's self-regulation skills, there is very little evidence on how recreation programs may act a context to foster self-regulation. Yet, recreation programs are well positioned to serve as an important context that can promote self-regulation skill development in youth. This article examines the literature on self-regulation, youth development, and recreation programming, and offers recreation professionals suggestions on how to support self-regulation in youth. We argue that practitioners should leverage fun and enjoyment, activities that have developmental attributes, and a positive social context to promote self-regulation. More specifically, the underlying developmental qualities within recreation activities that support self-regulatory skills are those that are goal oriented, challenging, and build skills. These types of activities provide the opportunity to engage in the cognitive processing, motivation, and self-directed behaviors that reflect effective self-regulation (Larson, 2000; Watts & Caldwell, 2008). Moreover, the social context within recreation programs provides meaningful opportunities for participants to build healthy adult-youth and peer relationships (Bocarro & Witt, 2003), which this relational mechanism is argued to be the basis for developing self-regulation. The social fabric inherent to these programs is well situated for adults to scaffold opportunities that teach youth how to plan, guide, and monitor their efforts towards achieving self-set goals. Collectively, it appears that both the activities and relational mechanisms integral to recreation programs are well situated to support self-regulation in youth, yet their intentional application to a recreation setting has received little attention. However, if recreation professionals intentionally and proactively work to promote self-regulation, their programs may directly address this critical aspect of positive youth development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It has been suggested that community, social cohesion and territorial ties in neighbourhoods may be characterised by three directions: the lost, the saved and the transformed. On the basis of a number of case studies in a Norwegian city, it is found that these three trends exist together, on the basis of various local interactive practices. The concept of an interaction pretext is developed to answer in a more nuanced way how various forms of social ties are developed, maintained and/or altered. By combining this concept with local activity, four community types are specified that may characterise different neighbourhoods and that may also exist in parallel at one place: the passing-by community, the tight community, the weak community, and the split community. Demonstrating the potential of a more detailed empirical approach to the community question, the paper warns against too analytically shallow suggestions about their development. By understanding how neighbourhoods develop socially in different ways, it may be possible to increase the probability of better community planning. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

MASS-MEDIA IS A POWERFUL INSTRUMENT OF INFLUENCE ON SOCIETY ATTITUDES AND FOR PROVIDING INFORMATION ON IMMIGRANTS COMMUNITIES. THE SOCIETY IN WICH WE LIVE IS MORE AND DIVERSIFIED BOTH CULTURALLY AND LINGUISTICALLY DUE TO IMMIGRATION, BUT THIS CHANGES ARE NOT ALWAYS REFLECTED IN A THRUTHFUL MANNER. MASS-MEDIA IS INDEBTED TO USE HER INFORMATIVE, RECREATIONAL AND EDUCATIONAL ROLE IN ORDER TO DELIVER INFORMATION CLEARLY ON THE POSITIVE OR NEGATIVE ASPECTS OF NOWADAYS SOCIETY. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To link to full-text access for this article, visit this link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2006.02.001 Byline: Oliver R.W. Pergams (a), Patricia A. Zaradic (b) Keywords: Entertainment media; Multiple linear regression; National park visitation; Natural areas; Oil prices; Outdoor recreation; Spearman correlation; Videophilia Abstract: After 50 years of steady increase, per capita visits to US national parks have declined since 1988. This decline, coincident with the rise in electronic entertainment media, may represent a shift in recreation choices with broader implications for the value placed on biodiversity conservation and environmentally responsible behavior. We compared the decline in per capita visits with a set of indicators representing alternate recreation choices and constraints. The Spearman correlation analyses found this decline in NPV to be significantly negatively correlated with several electronic entertainment indicators: hours of television, (r.sub.s=-0.743, P Author Affiliation: (a) Department of Biological Sciences (MC 066), University of Illinois at Chicago, 845 W. Taylor St., Chicago, IL 60607, USA (b) Stroud Water Research Center, 970 Spencer Road, Avondale, PA 19311, USA Article History: Received 30 August 2005; Revised 8 February 2006; Accepted 9 February 2006

In the sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries, English market towns used communal town squares for popular recreation as well as economic activity. In the following century, town authorities began to discourage non-economic use of such spaces. This shows the cultural effect of civic improvement in this period.

The article presents a reprint of the article "Dangerous sports and obvious risks - Anyone for cricket?" by professor Jim Corkery. It examines the benefits and risks of cricket that is considered as a dangerous sport and a dangerous recreational activity including its potential to cause physical injuries and the promotion of social cohesion. It also discusses the court rulings on several court cases that involved the sport.

The article discusses on the developments in the municipal public markets of variety of British cities on popular entertainment in the twentieth century and the social role of urban parks. It mentions the increasing variety of popular entertainments such as dancing to more discerning leisure consumer. It also adds the process for the determination of recreational value of public parks.

Copyright of Journal of Policy Research in Tourism, Leisure & Events 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.)

This article discusses the relationship between recreation, social cognition, and child development. An analysis of social interaction, play behaviors, interpersonal relations is presented.

Copyright of Recherches Sociographiques is the property of Recherches Sociographiques 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.)

The purpose of this study was to explore life experiences of immigrants and their interactions with members of other ethnic groups. This study also examined the role that recreation activities played in positive intergroup interactions. Using qualitative in-depth interview among Korean women immigrants, three salient themes were identified: (a) a lack of opportunities for intergroup contact, (b) distinct inter-ethnic boundaries, and (c) engagement in recreation activities as a facilitator of positive intergroup contacts. This study showed that participation in recreation activities helped to develop cross-group friendships and ethic and cultural understandings, and reduced life challenges and barriers. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This article describes a developmental series of coordinated stages that can enhance youth development through the integration of recreation and education activities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An introduction is presented in which the editor discusses various reports within the issue on topics including including the platform for evaluating the contribution of recreation, play, and leisure to adolescent development, the professional development and competencies of recreation, and the intersection of public policy and recreation.

The article discusses the women's industrial softball league in London, Ontario, between 1923 and 1935. The article describes the growth of London industry and job opportunities in manufacturing for women at companies such as breakfast food maker Kellogg, Silverwood Dairy, and coffee company Gorman Eckerts. According to the article, these and many other companies sponsored women's softball teams who competed in officially-sanctioned leagues organized and managed by male executives. The author examines the lives of industrial employees and softball players Hazel Shackleton, Gladys Oliver, and Olive Campbell, particularly their recruitment to industrial companies specifically for their athletic abilities.

The article discusses technical and economic development of theaters from the eighteenth to the twentieth century that starts with the transformation of light. It notes the ability of modern audiences as an agglomeration of individual witnesses that spring from the technical potential of focusing on a highlight area of heightened value. It mentions the enhancement of electrical light of the optical accessibility of city streets, department stores, and urban venues. It mentions the quality of the works of film director Alfred Hitchcock which depict the new modern public theatricality making possible the nineteenth century transformations of the stage.

This study examined the meaning of leisure for Chinese/Canadians. Participants (N = 35) completed a diary seven times a day for 12 days when a randomly scheduled watch alarm rang. Participants indicated what activity they were doing, whether it was work, leisure, both, or neither, and their motivations for and needs fulfilled by the activity. Participants primarily engaged in passive leisure activities, researchers and participants often differed in whether they deemed the activity leisure, and participants differentiated between leisure and non-leisure in terms of high intrinsic motivation, low effort, and low introjected reward motivation. In contrast with most Western research, perceived freedom was not an important distinguishing factor. A cross-cultural leisure meaning framework was developed to explain these findings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This investigation examines the psychometric properties of a modified involvement scale (MIS) using recreationists sampled at a national forest in upstate South Carolina and consumers enquiring about angling opportunities in the Low Country of South Carolina. Following the testing of several model configurations, support for a conceptualization of enduring involvement was observed consisting of five correlated facets: attraction, centrality, social bonding, identity expression and identity affirmation. This conceptualization was an extension of McIntyre's measure. Notable departures from McIntyre's conceptualization include the extraction of a social component previously embedded in the centrality facet and greater distinction in the leisure identification processes. This led to the construction of two identification facets. Testing using multiple criteria of validity and reliability illustrated that the MIS was a sound indicator of enduring leisure involvement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Eleven conceptual models that illustrate the relationship between ethnicity/race and recreation are examined. From Lindsay and Ogle (1972) to Floyd, Gramman, and Saenz (1993), the reader is taken through the array of theoretical models that have been used to determine recreation participation by ethnic/racial groups in America. A new conceptual model is created that incorporates elements from each of the previous 11 models. This new model is termed the Ethnicity and Public Recreation Participation Model (EPRP Model)[sup ©]. The EPRP Model is introduced as a viable theoretical framework for studying and measuring the relationship between ethnic/racial factors and recreation participation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Because consumption and consumerism are still viewed as 'feminine' by American sociology and women's history, this paper re-examines the degree to which pre-Depression white men represented a consuming constituency. My analysis of 1890 U.S. Census data suggest that the value of late-Victorian men's personal consumption was about twice as large as women's. Moreover, by examining how white men spent their leisure time outside of the house between 1880 and 1930, I find such men actively incorporated lavish consumption and consumerism into their lives through numerous commodified recreational activities and organizations such as fraternities, men's clubs, sports, and male-only entertainment. Finally, I show how the discourse of heterosexual masculinity has elided most male consumption and consumerism by coding such activity as 'feminine,' and discuss why the evidence of male consumerism that does exist has been overlooked by the gender and consumerism literature., In her exploration of the historical relationship between American men and cosmetics, Kathy Peiss outlines how the late-nineteenth and early twentieth-century discourse of heterosexual masculinity denied and covered up men's [...]

Before his death last year, J. B. Jackson stood virtually unchallenged as the pre-eminent scholar of the American landscape. Here, in one of his final essays, Jackson turned his thoughts to leisure, and found that where we play our games often says as much about us as what we choose to play., We find ourselves driving down a street in a poor section of town. The uniform frame houses, each with a front porch and a patch of grass, are separated by [...]