Leisure Sciences Research Articles

Holistic Analysis of Recreation and Leisure Science in Sports

The aim of this research is to analyse scientific publications between 1980-2020 and to make a holistic analysis on recreation and leisure science in sports. Using the data obtained within the scope of the study, information graphics and explanatory bibliometric networks that reveal bibliometric networks were created. According to the results obtained from the study, the most used keywords were found to be “recreation”, “leisure” and “sport/s”. Citation analysis reveals that Lee, Powell and Iwasaki are the most cited authors. There are a total of 475 journals in the data. Leisure Sciences, Journal of Leisure Research and Annals of Leisure Research, are the most cited journals. Griffith University (Australia), University of Illinois (USA) and University of Sydney (Australia) were the leading publishers. It can be stated that the concepts used in leisure and recreation studies focus on physical activity, that the majority of the tourism sector is aimed at the long-term area, that it focuses on theses and government policies to increase participation in physical activity, and that it contains arguments for the development of social theories and practical applications.

Leisure, Loss, and Death: Probing Intersections in Research Narratives

Encounters with loss and death are an inherent part of human existence and a significant element in the tapestry of leisure. This article concludes the special issue of Leisure Sciences on ‘Leisure, Loss, and Death.’ It reflects upon the submitted manuscripts and introduces temporal approaches to the study of loss, highlighting distinctions between planning for and anticipating loss, the commodification and festivalization of loss, and the ways in which leisure can contribute to the recovery from loss and death. The article underscores that, by contemplating the event of loss and the temporal/experiential milieus before and after, numerous promising avenues for further inquiry emerge.

New Horizons in Loss and Death Research in Leisure Studies

Death is among the few certainties of life. Although personal and societal attitudes about death are varied and complex, death can act as a catalyst for action, resulting in a somber, affirmative, and more authentic existence—captured by Heidegger’s term “being-toward-death.” This article calls for a more proactive engagement with the topic of death vis-à-vis leisure, asserting a greater need to embrace diverse perspectives, philosophies, and worldviews through both empirical and conceptual research. Serving as the introduction to the special issue of Leisure Sciences on “Leisure, Loss and Death,” it explores nuanced definitions of death and distinguishes between personal and collective loss. It urges a more affirmative embrace of death in leisure research, presenting death as an existential milieu that can inform human existence.

Fear City, Cop City and Other Tales, a Call for Police Research

It has been noted that crime and enforcement are likely a defining part of an evolving leisure experience. The aims of this manuscript were to call for research to focus on this phenomenon of the shooting and killing of people, particularly Black citizenry, by law enforcement. State sanctioned violence has been consistently wrought in leisure spaces and settings since those 2014–2015 deaths that were noted previously in the Leisure Sciences article, “The Case of the 12-year-old Boy: Or, the Silence of and Relevance to Leisure Research”. An understanding of policing, not police officers, and an understanding of society, not social behavior are the needs in the research of a legitimate phenomenon that occurs within the space, time, and activities of leisure, sport, and tourism.

Statement of Removal

It has been noted that crime and enforcement are likely a defining part of an evolving leisure experience. The aims of this manuscript were to call for research to focus on this phenomenon of the shooting and killing of people, particularly Black citizenry, by law enforcement. State sanctioned violence has been consistently wrought in leisure spaces and settings since those 2014–2015 deaths that were noted previously in a Leisure Sciences article, “The Case of the 12-year-old Boy: Or, the Silence of and Relevance to Leisure Research.” An understanding of policing, not police officers, as tool for surveillance and control along with an understanding of society, not on individualized or small group social behavior are the needs in the research of a legitimate lethal and trauma-inducing phenomenon that occurs within the space, time, and activities of leisure, sport, and tourism.

Choreographed Fan Displays: The Case of Israeli Sports

Choreographed Fan Displays: The Case of Israeli Sports

The impact of place attachment and ecological behavior on the consumer resistance toward change

Place attachment has been considered in many disciplines such as leisure sciences or environmental psychology and through many approaches. However, little has been done on the relationship between the consumer and the place of service. In this context and based on recent findings in human attachment literature and especially place attachment theory, this research offers a conceptual framework explaining the process by which consumer resistance emerges from emotional and social bonds (objective vs subjective, internal, and external connections). This study examines how Place Attachment leads individuals to resist consumption in touristic places that could introduce changes in places in which they are born, live or act. This research aims to clarify the concept of place attachment by identifying its main dimensions and providing a better understanding of the concept of resistance toward change. We argue that attachment-resistance links have received little interest in the marketing literature. Empirically, qualitative research was carried out using in-depth interviews and ethnography, followed by a quantitative study conducted in two Tunisian regions namely Kelibia (North East) and El Djerid (South West) to highlight the behavior of consumers identified as “place attached” acting save nature and place environment. Our results show that the three sub-dimensions of place attachment-place dependence, place identity, and place affect - are significantly associated with ecological behavior. So attachment to places is an important antecedent of pro-environmental behaviors and attitudes. Our findings offer some insights for both academicians and practitioners operating in the field of tourism projects to better understand the behavior of local consumers and visitors to these places.

How to deal with tourism constraints for seniors? Evidence from social tourism programmes

ABSTRACT The article examines how tourism constraints for seniors are addressed through social tourism programmes. The research is aimed to (1) identify and (2) classify/categorise various adjustments in social torism programmes for seniors to determine the unique combination of adjustments that characterise social tourism programmes for seniors. Building on the hierarchical leisure constraints model [Crawford, D. W., Jackson, E. L., & Godbey, G. (1991). A hierarchical model of leisure constraints. Leisure Sciences, 13(4), 309–320. doi:10.1080/01490409109513147] the analysis intersects the three groups of constraints – intrapersonal, interpersonal and structural – with three strands of uncertainty faced by seniors – travel uncertainty, financial uncertainty and mobility uncertainty and corresponding social support adjustments: personal support mechanisms and instrumental support mechanisms. The proposed model shows that travel social support is of central importance for effectively negotiating the travel constraints in social tourism for seniors.

Student Perceptions of an Interprofessional Collaboration in an Experiential Learning Setting

Interprofessional collaboration (IPC) in an experiential learning setting can provide undergraduate and graduate students opportunities to learn about other professional practices, address patient/individual needs, and learn to work in a team setting that is respective of many disciplines. The current study examined the impact of an interprofessional summer camp, Camp Maverick: Rec N’ Read, on undergraduate and graduate students’ perceptions of their learning. The students participated in focus groups after the IPC experience to reflect on their learning throughout the camp. Our findings suggest that a camp setting, outside of clinical practice, can provide a unique learning experience for individuals in a variety of disciplines related to health, especially those in recreation and leisure sciences. We conclude that the additional IPC learning experiences are needed to bring students the opportunity to learn professional practices in clinical sciences, humanities, and education. It will better prepare students for professional practice.

Digging Deeper: Engaging in Reflexivity in Interpretivist-Constructivist and Critical Leisure Research

As interpretivist-constructivist and critical scholarship has advanced within leisure science, so too does the need for more comprehensive approaches for reflexivity. Reflexivity, which can be described as an act, capacity, or practice to self-critique one’s own biases that may influence the construction of knowledge, is an important means for meeting standards of goodness or quality within qualitative research. This study sought to strengthen leisure research through a conceptual exploration of reflexivity. The authors created a series of vignettes to analyze their past research experiences, employing hermeneutics and feminist epistemologies to guide reflexive practice. Consequently, social and relational context of knowledge, representation and voice, positionality and embodiment, awareness of politico-ideological character, and unconscious/emotional entanglement emerged as dimensions of a reflexive framework. Informed by this process, a collection of questions are offered as a tool to assist others with more holistic reflexive practice within the leisure sciences.

Instagranimal: Animal Welfare and Animal Ethics Challenges of Animal-Based Tourism.

Simple SummaryAnimals of countless species, wild as well as tame, can now entertain tourists on their holidays. The popularity, however, of animal-based tourism comes with significant risks for the welfare of these animals. Many animals are kept in small confinements, are broken down to interact obediently with tourists, or are made to perform, entertain, transport or even give their lives for human leisure. In this paper, the challenges of animal-based tourism are presented from the perspectives of interdisciplinary researchers. The challenges are discussed based on a two-day symposium with workshop sessions. We bring attention to the problem of cultural relativism and the difficulty of imposing universal standards of animal welfare. We conclude that reforms and individual travel decisions as a result of biosecurity concerns will impact animal welfare. In addition to this, we observe that technology has a dual role to play in enhancing edutainment but also potentially inviting new challenges. In the end, we declare some possibilities for compassionate animal based tourism.By animal-based tourism, a host of activities offering passive viewing or active interaction with wild, semi-wild or captive animals is included. The multibillion dollar industry is on the rise globally today, offering modes of engagement with animals that trade on increasingly embodied close encounters with non-human animals. As new modes of animal-based tourism proliferate, such as sloth selfies, visiting cat cafes, swimming with sharks and agri-tourism petting zoos, animal welfare standards risk deteriorating. In the following paper, we collate concerns over animal welfare into a discussion on the challenges facing animal-based tourism. Our synthesis is the first to consider the full spectrum of such animal-based tourism: across agri-, hunting, zoo and safari tourism, to name a few, and crossing consumptive and non-consumptive boundaries. A literature review is first provided. Findings are then presented thematically following workshops at an international interdisciplinary symposium of leading tourism, animal welfare, ethics and leisure sciences scholars together with practitioners of the industry. It discusses macrolevel drivers to animal-based tourism as an industry, the problem of cultural relativism and the role of technology in enhancing or promoting the experience. We indicate ways forward toward implementing a compassionate animal-based tourism.

Leisure Activity Participation, Exercise Level and Perceived Freedom in University Students (Akdeniz University Example)

One of the main topics handled in leisure literature is “The benefits obtained by leisure activity participation”. Besides physical health benefits, positive emotion outcomes are inquired very often in studies. Perceived freedom in leisure is one of the positive outcomes mentioned by researchers in leisure sciences. The aim of this study is to examine recreative activity participation, leisure time exercise participation and perceived freedom of university students that attended to elective physical education courses. The population of the study consists of students attending to elective physical education courses, meanwhile the sample of the study consisted of 500 voluntary students. As data collection tool “Godin Leisure Time Exercise Questionnaire” and “Perceived Freedom in Leisure” scales were used. In data analysis, non parametric correlation and hypothesis tests were used as the data were not normally distributed. According to the results leisure time exercise levels and perceived freedom scores showed a positive significant correlation (r=0.234, p<0.05). This shows that the level of exercise in leisure time increases the perception of freedom obtained from leisure activities. Men participants showed higher level of perceived freedom when compared with women (p<0.05). Men participants were also found to be more actively participating to exercise than women (χ2=22,064, p<0.05). The participants that perceived their economic status better than the other group showed higher percentage of active participation (χ2=8,472, p<0.05). For future research, the positive emotion effects of leisure activity participation could be studied in different study groups such as disabled participants, elderly people, recovering patients, immigrants and other different groups.

Deepening Diversity: A Collection of Teaching Perspectives and Strategies from Social Justice Advocates

Contemporary population trends impact leisure experiences and service delivery, requiring recreation and leisure departments to prepare students to meet the needs of an increasingly diverse clientele. However, with little formal training on how to teach content concerning diverse populations, this can be a daunting task. The panel session Preparing Students to Serve Diverse Populations was featured at the 2018 The Academy of Leisure Sciences (TALS) Research and Teaching Institute to help instructors navigate the challenges that arise when teaching diversity-related content to undergraduate and graduate students. This paper focuses on the lessons and recommendations that emerged from that panel of social justice scholars. Using the teaching to transgress philosophy and the Teaching Tolerance Anti-bias Framework, we highlight personal philosophies, pedagogical experiences, and specific activities that may help other instructors teach beyond diversity to facilitate students’ connections with broader issues of social justice.

The End of (Objective) Leisure

This paper examines the ontological and epistemological assumptions about leisure to critically assess the state of leisure scholarship. It argues that there are no intrinsic characteristics or essences inherent to leisure, and that researchers ought to make an important distinction between leisure as socially constructed social facts, and the erroneous view of leisure as an ontologically objective and universal entity. It is purported that from an epistemological standpoint the crisis of leisure sciences has never been resolved; however, the absence of a stable theory is an opportunity for new forms of research and knowledge to emerge. The article introduces postleisure as a departure from leisure-objectivism and a shift towards plural readings of leisure, which may find sufficient backbone in Rorty’s notion of epistemological solidarity.

For Those to Come: An Introduction to Why Posthumanism Matters

As the introduction to the special issue of Leisure Sciences dedicated to interdisciplinary theorizations and practices productively informed by our posthuman predicament and currents within posthumanist thought, this article sets the stage, tone, and itinerary for a series of articles examining the various potentials posthumanism affords. As such, we attempt to connect multiple ways posthumanism may be taken up with key concepts, linguistic identifiers, and onto-epistemological shifts that may open upon important differences in how we live, think, and relate with human and nonhuman entities. Resisting melancholic laments at the failures of humanism, we urge for an affirmative, upbeat, and visionary approach to set a different trajectory for our future. This article is intended to serve as a point of departure for scholars desiring to experiment with what posthumanism can do to generate changes and accelerations for a more humane, if not less human-centric, future.

Preventing leisure from being overlooked: Intersecting leisure and prevention sciences

Leisure opportunities and experiences make powerful contributions to individual and community health by promoting positive and reducing negative health outcomes at individual, community, state, and national levels. Leisure researchers have long promoted the health benefits of parks and recreation, reflecting leisure’s role in public health. However, the idea that leisure can make a contribution to prevention has received less attention. Thus, we advocate incorporating a prevention science perspective to help researchers hone an agenda focused on leisure, health, and well-being across the lifespan. We review the evolution of leisure and prevention science as separate fields, identify where they intersect, and offer considerations for moving forward. We conclude by providing three main considerations for adopting prevention science approaches and promoting the context and experience of leisure, followed by six actionable recommendation steps to more effectively understand and promote health.

Leisure studies in the 21st century: Challenges and opportunities in our collective identity

The year 2018 marked a milestone for leisure research, as the World Leisure Journal, the Journal of Leisure Research, and Leisure Sciences will celebratet their 60th, 50th, and 40th years in publication, respectively. A review of previous articles chronicling the evolution and status of leisure studies revealed three common themes since the 1980s: (a) incompatible faculty roles, (b) insularity, and (c) fragmentation. We examined recent developments in higher education and patterns of change in departmental profiles, in revised undergraduate and graduate curricula that exclude leisure philosophy and theory in core requirements, and in faculty hiring practices. We suggest that these recent developments, combined with the issues posed in prior articles that remain unaddressed, raise concern about the sustainability of leisure studies in the current higher education model. A possible future rooted in a philosophical foundation of leisure is presented.

The biochemistry behind human behavior: Implications for leisure sciences and services

This research reflection explores the relationship between biochemistry and human behavior. More specifically, it examines the implications associated with two neural pathways in the brain, one leading to pleasure and the other to contentment. After describing how the two pathways work and where they lead, we turn the reader’s attention to the implications for leisure sciences and services, including the way we think about leisure behavior, how we plan for it, and, ultimately, how we might rethink the leisure service profession’s obligation in light of its classical philosophical foundations.

Creating Distance from Body Issues: Exploring New Materialist Feminist Possibilities for Renegotiating Gendered Embodiment

The body’s active role in the production of gendered embodiments is a key focus for feminist cultural studies and leisure studies. The article draws on new materialist feminist scholarship to explore how gender relations are produced and negotiated in physical culture through one case study example taken from a wider study of young people’s experiences of the body and self-image over time. The article explores how gendered embodiment is assembled through the socio-material circumstances of everyday life. For one particiapnt, 'Ann', “creating distance” from appearance concerns was an embodied process which involved new practices and encounters (e.g., walking for leisure, reading feminist literature) and relationships and engagements with others (e.g., a partner, friends, family). The potential for feminism to open possibilities to imagine the body otherwise is also discussed in relation to recent efforts to foster social justice imperatives in leisure sciences and feminist physical cultural studies.

Getting Started on the Tenure Track: Challenges and Strategies for Success

Tenure-track positions at institutions of higher education are often highly coveted because they offer job stability, academic freedom, and higher pay. Despite this allure, the academic career path is fraught with challenges, particularly during the first few years of a tenure-track position where one must balance new demands and escalating expectations. We synthesized existing literature with data collected through an online survey of leisure academics and discussions derived from the “Growing Up Academic” panel sessions that took place during the 2016 Academy of Leisure Sciences Teaching Institute to examine the challenges and opportunities that individuals must navigate during the early years on the tenure track. Challenges identified included concerns about transitioning identities, divergent responsibilities, insecurities, and uncertain expectations regarding tenure and promotion. Many of these issues were more pronounced for faculty of color. However, participants also highlighted some key strategies that could be employed to address challenges: (a) Know expectations and document progress, (b) Collaborate regularly, (c) Seek professional mentors, (d) Develop an academic identity, (e) Be proactive and strategic in all areas of scholarship, and (f) Be realistic. Emerging scholars who heed this advice will be better equipped to navigate the early stages of academic life and successfully achieve tenure.