A longitudinal study on leisure of Hong Kong adolescents

Abstract

ABSTRACT This longitudinal study examined the leisure of adolescents over a ten-year period starting from the last year of secondary school. Employing a qualitative approach, semi-structured interviews were conducted with a group of 35 senior secondary students over three phases with an interval of 5 years each. Five themes emerged from the data analysis: variability in leisure pursuit over time, steady recognition of leisure as disengagement from obligations, satisfying emerging needs through leisure, longed-for leisure and perceived constraints, and the role of significant others. These themes revealed change and stability in leisure participation and perceptions of the respondents and the way these dimensions were shaped by role and contextual changes. The study added to the knowledge of leisure across the life course and especially during the period between adolescence and young adulthood. Through the longitudinal contextualised examination of leisure among Hong Kong youngsters, this study also shed light on significant cultural factors shaping leisure in non-Western contexts.