Examining interactions between adventure seeking and states of the four channel flow model

Abstract

This study evaluates the relationships between states of the four channel flow model and adventure seeking traits among Whitewater kayakers using a modified Experience Sampling Method. Study hypotheses were concerned with determining whether the interaction between adventure seeking and the four channel flow model predicts differences in dimensions of subjective experience. Questionnaires were administered on‐site to 52 Whitewater kayakers on the Cheat River in West Virginia at eight sites varying in river difficulty (Class I‐V). Data were analyzed at the level of single experience measurements (n = 409 experience observations) rather than per respondent. Statistical analyses (using principal axis factoring and hierarchical linear modelling) confirmed a three dimensional structure of flow indicators, and that the interactions of adventure seeking and the channels of the flow model were significant predictors of an Intrinsic Freedom dimension. Although the adventure seeking trait was a significant predictor of the Affect and Activation dimension, this dimension and the Cognitive Control dimension were not significantly predicted by interactions with channels of the flow model. The significant interaction between the flow state and adventure seeking trait in predicting the Intrinsic Freedom dimension suggests that higher adventure seeking, coupled with entering the flow state, enhances the intrinsic nature of the subjective experience in the Cheat Canyon. Implications of this interaction include a focus on programming for opportunities that inspire intrinsic freedom.