The importance of latent benefits and meaningful leisure activity in predicting quality of life in Australian retirees

Abstract

It is important to understand the factors that can contribute to quality of life in retirees. Accessing latent benefits, which are generally associated with paid employment, has been shown to increase quality of life. It is proposed that meaningful leisure may act as a substitute for paid employment in retirees. A sample of 123 male and female participants living in 8 different retirement villages in Queensland, Australia, were assessed using the Latent and Manifest Benefits Scale, the World Health Organisation Quality of Life scale and the Meaningful Leisure Activity Questionnaire to examine the role of meaningful leisure activity on access to latent benefits and perceived quality of life. Results showed that during retirement, access to the five latent benefits of time structure, shared experiences, identity, collective purpose and enforced activity is positively related to quality of life. Results demonstrated that only collective purpose mediated the relationship between meaningful leisure and quality of life. Further, meaningful leisure was positively related to quality of life. The implications of these results are discussed.