Recreation Professionals Research Articles

Triple Gain

This document highlights numerous ideas that faculty can implement to provide a triple gain, that is, a gain for students, professionals and faculty through collaborative work. We will explore traditional and innovative connections that can be made between recreation professionals, students, and faculty, within parks, recreation, and tourism management programs, with a particular focus on identifying and discussing compatible and competing viewpoints. The authors of this paper have experienced the benefits and challenges of pursuing the triple gain from all three perspectives and offer practical ideas to maximize these connections in order to bridge the gap between higher education and the professional world.

"We actually care and we want to make the parks better": A qualitative study of youth experiences and perceptions after conducting park audits.

This study explored youths' experiences and perceptions about community engagement as a result of participating in a community-based data collection project using paper and mobile technology park environmental audit tools. In July 2014, youth (ages 11-18, n=50) were recruited to participate in nine focus groups after auditing two parks each using paper, electronic, or both versions of the Community Park Audit Tool in Greenville County, SC. The focus groups explored the youths' experiences participating in the project, changes as a result of participation, suggested uses of park audit data collected, and who should use the tools. Four themes emerged related to youths' project participation experiences: two positive (fun and new experiences) and two negative (uncomfortable/unsafe and travel issues). Changes described as a result of participating in the project fell into four themes: increased awareness, motivation for further action, physical activity benefits, and no change. Additionally, youth had numerous suggestions for utilizing the data collected that were coded into six themes: maintenance & aesthetics, feature/amenity addition, online park information, park rating/review system, fundraising, and organizing community projects. Finally, six themes emerged regarding who the youth felt could use the tools: frequent park visitors, community groups/organizations, parks and recreation professionals, adults, youth, and everyone. This study revealed a wealth of information about youth experiences conducting park audits for community health promotion. Understanding youth attitudes and preferences can help advance youth empowerment and civic engagement efforts to promote individual and community health.

An exploratory study of concussion management policies in municipal park and recreation departments

ABSTRACTDespite the burgeoning interest in reducing concussions among youth sport participants, research investigating concussion safety policies of municipal park and recreation departments has been sparse. A national survey of park and recreation professionals in 50 states (n = 739, response rate of 23%) was conducted in 2015 to assess concussion management policies and practices of municipal park and recreation departments. Only about one-third of respondents indicated that their departments required coaches to be trained in concussion safety. Among those who mandated concussion safety training, the CDC’s ‘Heads Up: Concussion in Youth Sports’ was the most commonly used concussion safety training material. Despite the low number of departments requiring concussion safety training for youth sport coaches using park/recreation facilities, nearly two-thirds encouraged concussion safety training for such coaches. The results suggest that, overall, municipal park and recreation department’s concussion safety policies are lagging behind those typically found in interscholastic and collegiate sport programs.

Measuring Social Capital and Support Networks of Young Immigrants

<p class="apa">This paper addresses the importance of the diagnosis of “personal communities” as relational systems that may influence the academic pathways of young immigrants. As part of a longitudinal study of the academic persistence of young people in their transition from compulsory to post-compulsory education, a “personal network questionnaire” has been developed. This instrument allows the relational structure of students to be captured and represented, and the impact of this structure on educational outcomes to be analysed. It measures and explores the network of inter-relations with adults (family, educational and recreational professionals, etc.) and peers in different settings. The theoretical elements underpinning its design and implementation are the interweaving of the student social capital and social support system to which they have or may have access to, and the Social Network Analysis (SNA) approach as the methodological framework. This network approach is rendered highly significant and valuable for professionals in educational diagnosis to assess relational vulnerability and design programs of intervention and counseling. With graphic techniques, we can somewhat address this challenge by examining patterns in relational data, experimenting with these data and putting forward hypotheses.</p>

Professional Constraints

Noting that our field is minimally relevant to the multitude of ways the American public is engaged in leisure and recreation, Samdahl delves into our history in attempt to understand how this came about. She notes that the recreation movement as canonized in our textbooks ignores parallel efforts that led to community theaters, libraries, and museums. In the 1960s, the narrow focus of our field was formalized through the birth of NRPA and sustained through accreditation standards designed to train public recreation professionals. Shortly thereafter, the 1970s brought a multitude of pressures for research-based scholarly inquiry, and undergraduate practitioner programs expanded by adding doctoral programs that promoted leisure scholarship. Samdahl examines and deconstructs the ensuing binary, arguing that recreation practitioners and leisure scholars are like water and oil—thrown together by circumstance but never able to mix. Stepping back, Samdahl deconstructs that binary to highlight the ways it overlooks other relevant aspects of our field. She concludes by saying that leisure studies never did belong in academic departments committed to practitioner preparation, and the well-intentioned experiment that placed these fields together ultimately stymied the growth of leisure scholarship within our field.

Exploring NIRSA Championship Series Professional Development Opportunities: Understanding Their Perceived Value to the Association

The NIRSA Championship Series (Series) is a significant component of NIRSA: Leaders in Collegiate Recreation (NIRSA). Demonstrated, in part, by the fact that many campus recreational professionals contend the events directly relate to both their institution and the association's mission. The purpose of this study was to gain an understanding of how NIRSA professionals perceive the value of volunteer experiences at Series events. The research team conducted semistructured interviews with thirteen campus recreation directors. The participants had a median of 28 years in the profession, ( SD = 7.4), and represented all six NIRSA regions. In describing the benefits of volunteerism at Series events, the directors identified three broad themes, each with numerous subthemes: Personal Experience (Lifelong learner, Mentors, and Networking), Professional Development (Teamwork, Leadership, Communication, and Training), and Ideal Job Characteristics (Attitude and Organizational Citizenship Behaviors). The themes, subthemes, and implications for Series events are discussed. In addition, the authors present suggestions for future research.

The Administered Public Recreation Marketing Concept

The article focuses on four major assumptions that underlie the alternative conceptualization of public recreation marketing. It explains (1) the redistribution system within recreation resources are allocated; (2) the organizational structure of recreation agencies; (3) the ways in which public recreation agencies interact with local governments and citizens; and (4) the code of ethics and its influence on the behavior of recreation professionals. Finally, the article attempts to integrate these assumptions into an alternative definition of public recreation marketing that is termed “administered marketing.”

Seven Steps for Implementing Afterschool Programs: Strategies for Physical Educators

After-school programs (ASP) are a long-standing activity historically facilitated by organizations such as the YMCA, Boys and Girls Club, social service/community centers and, in the past decade, an increasing number of municipal park districts. Staffing usually consist of recreation professionals, social and youth workers, and volunteers. In recent years, physical educators have joined the list of those sought to facilitate ASPs and are considered uniquely qualified, given the close relationship between physical education and recreation activities.In an effort to prepare physical educators for facilitating ASPs, formal presentations and discussions were conducted at the state level (2008) and again at the national level (2012) via the Illinois Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance and the American Alliance for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance (now SHAPE America – Society of Health and Physical Educators), respectively. The purpose was to inform physical educators on how to create, implement and evaluate an ASP for their school. The purpose of this article is to provide physical educators with a strategy to design an ASP by identifying and discussing steps for creating sustainable programs.

The National Environmental Public Health Tracking Network Access to Parks Indicator: A National County-Level Measure of Park Proximity.

Parks and recreation departments and public health organizations both work to improve the well-being of their communities. Measuring residential proximity to parks could be a specific area of shared interest, given that proximity to parks is needed for walking access, and the use of parks is, in turn, associated with many physical, social, and mental health benefits. The CDC's publicly available National Environmental Public Health Tracking Network (NEPHTN) Access to Parks Indicator (API) focuses on one major component of access, residential proximity to parks. The API uses a commercial parks database and U.S. Census data to estimate the number and percentage of individuals in the U.S. that live within a half-mile of a park boundary, a measure commonly used to represent park proximity. The API is calculated at the state and county levels and is available for all states and counties in the U.S. Using estimates from the API, we examined the distribution of residential proximity to parks by geography and race/ethnicity. Additionally, we evaluated differences in park proximity by rural/urban status of counties. In 2010, 39% of the total U.S. population lived within a half-mile of a park. This percentage varied widely between states, ranging from 9% in West Virginia to 67% in Hawaii and 88% in the District of Columbia (DC). Park proximity was lowest among non-Hispanic whites (34.2%) and highest among individuals belonging to the non-Hispanic other race category (52.0%). Metropolitan counties had the highest percentage of residents living within a half-mile of a park (43.3%); the percentage was lower in non-metropolitan counties adjacent to a metropolitan county (15.0%) and non-metropolitan counties not adjacent to a metropolitan county (18.5%). Park proximity was higher in metropolitan counties with a larger population size and in non-metropolitan counties with a higher degree of urbanization. The NEPHTN Access to Parks Indicator provides an opportunity to understand park proximity in counties and states throughout the U.S., including identifying disparities that may exist between population subgroups and comparing geographic areas. Parks and recreational professionals can use this information to compare their county or state to other geographic areas and, in combination with local data on parks within their jurisdiction, inform decisions to improve the distribution of parks and the well-being of their communities.

Lessons from the Legends: A Content Analysis of the American Academy for Park and Recreation Administration’s Legends Videos

This paper reports lessons learned from sampling 68 of 119 videotaped interviews with the American Academy for Park and Recreation Administration’s (AAPRA’s) Legends in Parks and Recreation. The videos contain great insight into the history of the organized park and recreation movement in the United States, as well as the administrative, educational, and philosophical positions of its leading administrators and educators. The examination was prompted by our interest in whether there might be patterns of foresight in the videos that could serve present and future park and recreation professionals. We examined each of the 68 videos in teams of two, searching for common themes. Using a three-phase content analysis, we discerned three broad categories within which to discuss the results: becoming extraordinary, being extraordinary, and serving an extraordinary profession. Within each of the three categories, we also discuss several emerging sub-themes. We conclude the paper by directing the reader to a video link that brings the Lessons from the Legends to life, and discussing educational use of the videos.

The Administered Public Recreation Marketing Concept

The article focuses on four major assumptions that underlie the alternative conceptualization of public recreation marketing. It explains (1) the redistribution system within recreation resources are allocated; (2) the organizational structure of recreation agencies; (3) the ways in which public recreation agencies interact with local governments and citizens; and (4) the code of ethics and its influence on the behavior of recreation professionals. Finally, the article attempts to integrate these assumptions into an alternative definition of public recreation marketing that is termed “administered marketing.”

Prioritizing challenges and solutions to the implementation of task-oriented community exercise programs for people with balance and mobility limitations

Background: To increase access to safe exercise programs in the community for people balance and mobility limitations, physical therapists (PTs) at a rehabilitation hospital partnered with a municipal recreation provider to implement an evidence-based, low cost, task-oriented group exercise program called “Together in Movement and Exercise” (TIME). In this innovativemodel, PTs train and provide ongoing support tofitness instructors to deliver TIME in community centres. To obtain a comprehensive understanding of issues limiting widespread expansion of the TIME program, we held a one-day stakeholders meeting. Purpose: To identify and prioritize challenges and action plans to starting, expanding and sustaining the provision of community-based task-oriented exercise programs for ambulatory people with balance and mobility limitations through a healthcare-recreation partnership. Methods: At a 1-day meeting held in Toronto, Canada, participants in the same stakeholder group were seated together. During two activities, participants at each tablewere asked to discuss and identify top challenges to implementing the TIME program and 3–5 strategies to address them. In a post-meeting online survey, participants were asked to rate the priority of each strategy as: not a priority, low priority, medium priority, and high priority. A strategy designated as a high priority by at least 60% of survey respondents was classified as a priority. Results: Fifty-three individuals attended the meeting and 41 people completed the online questionnaire. The percentage of meeting vs survey participants by stakeholder group was: fitness instructors (21% vs 15%), recreation coordinators/managers (21% vs 32%), healthcare system coordinators/managers (17% vs 22%), healthcare professionals (19% vs 15%), researchers (8% vs 10%), TIME participants (8% vs 2%) and caregivers (8% vs 5%). The challenges and priority strategies included: challenge-1: insufficient funding to run the program; strategy: submit a proposal to your regional health authority to fund exercise programs in the region (74%); challenge-2: maintenance of program integrity; strategy: Consistent use of training materials (71%); challenge-3: sustaining the exercise programs over time; strategies: ongoing communication/collaboration between rehabilitation and recreation providers (88%), ongoing training of new fitness instructors (71%); challenge-4: marketing of the program; strategies: links with physicians and healthcare providers (67%), links with peer support groups or charities (64%), use of standardized marketing materials (62%); challenge-5: training of fitness instructors to have complex skill set; strategy: consulting with key people (PT trainers) as problems arise (68%); challenge-6: no access to recruit TIME participants directly from healthcare; strategy: form links between rehabilitation and recreation providers (88%); challenge-7: exercise program full, not open to new registrants; strategies: offer additional programs (69%), offer a maintenance program (62%). Conclusion(s): Physical therapists can play a central role in collaborating with other healthcare and recreation professionals to develop and sustain community exercise programs for people with balance and mobility limitations. Implications: Meeting output is expected to inform service provision, health policy, education, and research.

Words Matter

Beyond the standard definitions found in the dictionary, words commonly used in the recreation field have subtle, yet powerful connotations of which senders and receivers of information may not be consciously aware. These words elicit different conscious and subconscious reactions that likely bear significant consequences for recreation agencies and university departments. This study measured the attitudes of three distinct populations (university students, citizens and recreation professionals) toward five words commonly used in the field: recreation, leisure, play, activity and sport. A semantic differential instrument was used to gather responses and interpret connotative meanings relating to the words. Further, a survey was administered to a random sample of citizens in a Midwestern state regarding applied questions (e.g., asking citizens if it were more appropriate to spend tax money to provide recreation services or to provide leisure services). A factor analysis yielded three factors: evaluative (good-bad), potency (powerful-powerless) and activity (fast-slow). Within and across subject group comparisons were subsequently performed on the three factors and significant differences amongst the three populations in the evaluative, potency and activity factors were found for each of the five words.

Expresión corporal. Una práctica de intervención que permite encontrar un lenguaje propio mediante el estudio y la profundización del empleo del cuerpo (Body expression. A practice of intervention that allows to find individual language with study of the

¿Qué es la expresión corporal? ¿para qué sirve el lenguaje del cuerpo? ¿qué metodología de enseñanza resulta más apropiada para trabajar contenidos expresivos? ¿cómo provocar un aprendizaje significativo a través de la utilización de una progresión lógica de actividades expresivas?. El presente trabajo se ha llevado a cabo con el propósito de tratar de dar respuesta a estos y otros interrogantes contribuyendo a la formación permanente y específica de los profesionales en materia de comunicación no verbal. Se trata de analizar la expresión corporal como una práctica de intervención que permite encontrar un lenguaje propio mediante el estudio y la profundización del empleo del cuerpo. Se parte de la hipótesis de que es fundamental que los profesionales vinculados a contextos educativos y recreativos descubran el potencial de la expresión corporal para el desarrollo integral de la persona. De esta forma, para utilizar la Expresión Corporal como herramienta formativa es imprescindible ser capaz de adaptar y/o combinar las diferentes actividades expresivas a las necesidades educativas y recreativas del grupo con el que trabaje.Palabra clave: Expresión Corporal. Lenguaje del cuerpo. Comunicación no verbal. Aprender haciendo. Actividades expresivas.Abstract: What is body language? What do you use body language? What teaching methodology is more appropriate to work expressive content? How do you teach significantly through the use of a logical progression of expressive activities?. In order to contribute to a specific training of professionals in nonverbal communication, the present review seeks to analyze the body language as a discipline that allows you to find a personal language through study and deepening the use of body . It starts from the assumption that it is essential that education and recreational professionals discover the potential of body language for the development of the individual. In this way, it will be able to develop their own sessions, adapting and/or combining various expressive activities to educational and recreational needs of their groups.Key words: Body Language. Non verbal communication. Learning by doing. Expressive activities.

Anthropocentric and Ecocentric

Sometimes environmental philosophers write only for other environmental philosophers, and their insights on the nature–human relationship do not reach environmental educators and adventure programmers. This article investigates one aspect of environmental philosophy and the differences between anthropocentric and ecocentric thinking, and applies it to the outdoor recreation and environmental education fields. Even some philosophers themselves believe that the anthropocentric/ecocentric debate is a theoretical discussion with few practical implications, but there are several reasons that outdoor recreation professionals and environmental educators might consider anthropocentric and ecocentric distinctions in their work. They include an appreciation of motivations behind environmental action and the practical value of discussing philosophical differences.

English

As the complexity of municipal recreation administration increases, along with tighter and more competitive funding environments, recreation professionals are increasingly reliant on strategic or master planning initiatives to guide their efforts. Successful planning means getting plans implemented-an agreed-upon universal obstacle in planning. When implementation is considered a process, it recognizes that implementation involves a plan moving from one complex, contentious, and politically charged environment to another. Successful implementation requires that each environment is successfully negotiated such that the plan can be ‘handed off’ to the next environment. Using a case study approach, this research described and analyzed the process of plan implementation in three Ontario municipalities that had recently engaged in a municipal recreation planning process. Data collection included planning documents and interviews ( n = 11) with key informants and stakeholders from each municipality. Study findings present a descriptive overview of the planning process for each municipality, followed by a description of the strategic decisions made by key actors as the plan moved through four important spaces in the planning process: the community, the department, city hall, and council chambers. Our findings show that four key decisions points that ultimately impact the implementation of a municipal recreation plan are community engagement, plan scope, collaborations, and council and resident support strategy. While each municipal recreation department confronted these same decision points or ‘baton exchanges’ (Loh, 2012; Pressman & Wildavsky, 1973), departments negotiated them differently, and thus the success of plan implementation varied. The findings of this study suggest that implementation is in fact not a step that is similar to the earlier steps of the planning process; that, in fact strategic implementation-related decisions are (and perhaps must be) made throughout the entirety of the planning process. This study draws research attention back to municipal recreation planning; informs the recreation services literature of the final step of the recreation planning process-implementation and furthers our understanding of plan implementation by contributing to the work of planning scholars.

The Administered Public Recreation Marketing Concept

The article focuses on four major assumptions that underlie the alternative conceptualization of public recreation marketing. It explains (1) the redistribution system within recreation resources are allocated; (2) the organizational structure of recreation agencies; (3) the ways in which public recreation agencies interact with local governments and citizens; and (4) the code of ethics and its influence on the behavior of recreation professionals. Finally, the article attempts to integrate these assumptions into an alternative definition of public recreation marketing that is termed “administered marketing.

Obesity-stigma and the ‘Why Try’ model: Implications for outdoor recreation constraint negotiation

Outdoor recreation provides a multitude of opportunities for the promotion of health, wellness, and quality of life, and such benefits can be especially helpful in countering the negative effects of inactivity and health problems related to obesity. However, the stigma related to being overweight has a high likelihood of constraining or preventing participation in outdoor recreation activities for people who are significantly overweight. In order to better understand how outdoor recreation professionals might address obesity-stigma and promote outdoor recreation activities to this target population, the authors create a theoretical framework, building from a modified labeling theory, the “Why Try” Model.

Intramural Sport Marketing: An Examination of Effectiveness, Participant Motives, and Demographic Differences

Parkour, an extreme recreational activity in which one overcomes obstacles in the most quick, efficient, and flowing way, encompasses running, jumping, vaulting, and climbing. The activity is gaining popularity on college campuses. The purposes of this study were to survey campus recreation administrators’ views and policies on parkour and explore the potential legal liability higher education institutions face with the rise in participation in this potentially dangerous activity. The results showed little sanctioned parkour activity on college campuses and that recreation administrators do not appear to be worried. The legal analysis indicated that currently colleges and universities would not likely face legal liability for students who are injured while participating. However, prudent college recreational professionals must remain aware of new activities on campus and may want to take additional steps to insulate themselves from risks of legal liability.

The delivery of recreation programs: Students gain entry level management skills through service learning

Service learning is a well-established pedagogy within higher education. Specifically, service learning allows students to engage in 'real world' activitites to practice skills and reflect upon their own competence. To enhance the effectiveness of service learning, instructors need to consider a multitude of learning influences. This study adhered to the tenants of the Social Cognitive Theory (Bandura, 1986; Schunk, 2004) to engage students in service learning activities related to entry level administrative competencies. Data analysis included a content analysis of reflection papers to determine how many times competencies expected of entry level recreation professionals were mentioned. Students percieved the acquisition of competencies consistent with entry level competencies identified within the recreation industry. Results contribute to the development of effective assignments to facilitate the acquisition of desired professional competencies.