NSW Council for Intellectual Disability
22-36 Mountain Street, Broadway, NSW, 2007
ph: (02) 9211 1611 freecall: 1800 424 065 fax (02) 9211 2606 e-mail: nswcid@cia.com.au
Leisure
A definition of leisure and its core features
…time…over which one has control…in which to do what one pleases…resulting in…
•
Increased quality of life: “I enjoy it”
•
A chance to fulfil valued roles: “it’s a part of how I define myself as a person”
•
Social interaction: “it’s where I make new friends and meet with my old friends”
•
Promoting physical health: “it’s invigorating!”
•
Development of skills: “it’s where I get to perfect old activities and try new ones”
Ensuring the benefits of leisure: “I enjoy it”
Leisure activities must be meaningful and
enjoyable.
All people, including people with
intellectual disability and high support needs, have
preferences about the activities they engage in,
and are able to express the enjoyment felt when
participating in such activities.
For many people, enjoyment is expressed through
smiling and laughter, however people also express
enjoyment in other ways. Two examples of the
way enjoyment might be seen are: in the way
someone pays sustained attention on particular
activities; or, in the way someone does not express
themselves
through
behaviour
considered
challenging while engaging in a particular activity.
Activities which are not enjoyable are not leisure
activities. It is sometimes tempting to plan and
engage in activities which resemble leisure, but
which are not actually enjoyable. For example, a
drive in the car is an activity that might resemble
leisure, but if it is an activity that is not meaningful
to the people engaging in it, then it is not leisure. It
is an exciting challenge to identify activities which
are enjoyable.
Sometimes the people who you engage in leisure
activities with are just as important as what you’re
doing. For example, going for a quiet walk with
one other person who is a good friend and
someone that you don’t get to spend much time
with can be just as enjoyable as visiting a shopping
centre with a group of people – like your
housemates – who you spend all your time with.
Ensuring the benefits
of leisure:
“It’s a part of how I define
myself as a person”
Leisure activities are important
sources of valued roles.
Consider the teenager who
devotes himself to punk music
and skateboarding; or the adult
woman who greatly enjoys
tapestry; or the child who wants
nothing more than to play on
swings and paint. These leisure
activities are important ways in
which each of these people tell
the world who they are – they are
roles which are socially valued
and are considered suitable by
the person and their peers.
Ensuring the benefits of leisure:
“It’s invigorating”
Leisure activities are a great way of
promoting physical health and well
being.
Activities such as sport, outdoor
adventure, walking, and even just
being outside, experiencing a new
environment and enjoying the fresh
air are all examples of leisure
activities that may be “invigorating”
for any person.
While every care has been taken to ensure the information in this document is accurate, it contains guidelines only in relation to its subject matter.
NSWCID suggests that professional adivce be sought wherever necessary. C:\WINDOWS\TEMP\Leisure2.doc ; 21/11/00; 15:19; Page 1 of 2.
NSW CID FACT SHEET NSW CID FACT SHEET NSW CID FACT SHEET NSW CID FACT SHEET NSW CID FACT SHEET
NSW Council for Intellectual Disability
22-36 Mountain Street, Broadway, NSW, 2007
ph: (02) 9211 1611 freecall: 1800 424 065 fax (02) 9211 2606 e-mail: nswcid@cia.com.au
Ensuring the benefits of leisure:
“It’s where I make new friends and meet with my old friends”
Leisure activities provide a rich source of new and maintained friendships. When you think
about your friendship circles, it soon becomes obvious that the people who are your friends
are most likely a diverse group people with whom you have a range of common interests. It
is typical that there are no or only a few people who you are friends with due to common
physical traits or life circumstances, for example:
•
For a person who wears glasses, it is unlikely that they have a number of friends who are
friends purely because they too wear glasses!
•
For a person with intellectual disability, is also would seem unusual if that person’s
friendship circle consists only, or mostly of other people with intellectual disability. It
would be more typical for this person to be friends with people who share common
interests, such as sport or music.
However, it is not a common experience for people with intellectual disability to have
friendship circles which are diverse. Some people might even consider this to be “normal”
and “ok,” because that person with intellectual disability is choosing their friendship circles to
consist of these people, and because these people are good friends – however comments
such as these (while having elements of truth) do not consider the complex underlying issues
that exist.
There are many reasons that a person’s friendship circle might be limited and not diverse:
•
If a person has not had the opportunity to meet a diverse range of people then it is likely
their friendship groups will not include a range of people. It is typical that people with
intellectual disability have been and are excluded from ordinary leisure activities.
However, this exclusion is discriminatory, and the Anti-Discrimination Act makes it illegal.
•
If a person has negative experiences, such as being ridiculed or ostracised, then it is
likely that they will feel uncomfortable approaching similar activities in the future: this
might be, or may have been the experience of a person with intellectual disability.
However, leisure is about enjoyment, and with careful effort and support that is sensitive
and gradual, all people can and do participate in inclusive, enjoyable leisure.
Diverse groups bring enjoyment to all involved in them. It is not just a person with intellectual
disability (who is striving to be fully involved in leisure activities) who will benefit from such
inclusion, but the whole group who share this experience of diversity.
Ensuring the benefits of leisure:
“It’s where I get to perfect old activities
and try new ones”
Leisure activities provide opportunities for us to develop our skills.
The skills that one develops through being involved in leisure
activities are not limited to the activity itself, such as ball skills,
running speed, singing in tune, chess strategy, or the dexterity
required for cross-stitch. Opportunities for perfecting old activities
and trying new ones can broaden our understanding of the world,
how it works, and how we fit in to it.
More information?
The NSWCID Jim
McLaughlin Reference
Library contains much
information
about
leisure. Visitors to this
library are welcome by
appointment
only,
Monday to Thursday,
9am to 5pm.
While every care has been taken to ensure the information in this document is accurate, it contains guidelines only in relation to its subject matter.
NSWCID suggests that professional adivce be sought wherever necessary. C:\WINDOWS\TEMP\Leisure2.doc ; 21/11/00; 15:19; Page 2 of 2.
NSW CID FACT SHEET NSW CID FACT SHEET NSW CID FACT SHEET NSW CID FACT SHEET NSW CID FACT SHEET
Leisure Sciences, 28: 487–491, 2006
C Taylor & Francis Group, LLC
Copyright
ISSN: 0149-0400 print / 1521-0588 online
DOI: 10.1080/01490400600851353
Research Reflections
More False Dichotomies: Play, Leisure,
Environmental Enrichment, and Important
Science Questions
CAREEN MACKAY YARNAL
GARRY CHICK
JOHN DATTILO
The Pennsylvania State University
University Park, Pennsylvania, USA
Most researchers would agree that dichotomies between the biomedical sciences and the
social sciences have created academic camps that largely act in isolation. Biomedical scientists are unacquainted with or give little heed to research conducted by social scientists and
social scientists are unaware of or disregard studies completed by biomedical scientists. We
argue in this essay that this division is bad news for researchers examining play and leisure.
Territoriality inhibits intellectual growth, prevents scientists from thinking more broadly,
limits cross-fertilization of ideas, and ultimately hinders abilities to address important science questions.
In this essay we explore how sharing between biomedical and social science researchers
could help address a debilitating disease. One of the most important biomedical puzzles
driving basic scientific research (Kennedy & Norman, 2005) is the extent to which people
can stave off Alzheimer’s disease. We chose this focus for two reasons. First, Alzheimer’s
disease (AD) is a significant social, economic, and policy issue for the United States.
Currently 4.5 million Americans have AD. By 2025 the number will increase 44% (Herbert,
Scherr, Bienies, Bennett, & Evans, 2003). Second, controlled studies on animal behavior
have increased understanding of AD at the sub-cellular, cellular, biochemical, and molecular
levels (Spires & Hannan, 2005). A growing awareness among social scientists is the belief
that large-scale processes such as leisure are linked to AD (e.g., Scarmeas, Levy, Tang,
Manly, & Stern, 2001). Yet collaboration on AD between social scientists and biomedical
researchers is limited. Most important, collaboration between researchers examining play
and leisure and researchers in the biomedical field is nearly absent.
The Issue of Alzheimer’s Disease
Although a sizeable number of Americans have been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease,
many more individuals are in the yet-to-be-diagnosed stages. AD is difficult to detect and
often masked as depression and normal aging. Periods of up to 10 years of brain cell loss
Address correspondence to Careen Mackay Yarnal, Department of Recreation, Park and Tourism Management, The Pennsylvania State University, 232 Mateer Building, University Park, PA 16802. E-mail:
cmy122@psu.edu
487
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C. M. Yarnal et al.
before appearance of disease symptoms are not uncommon. Without significant research
breakthroughs, Medicare and Medicaid costs to treat the disease by 2015 will be $304 billion
annually. Delaying nursing home placement by one month would save an estimated $1
billion per year. Hence, research into ways of preventing or delaying the disease, achieving
earlier diagnosis, improving treatments, and enhancing support for those living with the
disease are of fundamental importance (Alzheimer’s Association, 2005).
Alzheimer’s is a neurodegenerative disease resulting in a loss of mental then physical
functioning due to deterioration of brain tissue. The disorder is cumulative; it gradually
destroys a person’s memory and the ability to learn, to reason, make judgments, communicate, and complete daily activities. It affects personality and emotions. As the disease
progresses, cells die in other regions of the brain. Eventually, the individual requires complete care.
Alzheimer’s disease exact cause remains unknown, but current scientific evidence
points to the complex interaction of genetic susceptibility with environmental factors (Van
Praag, Kempermann, & Gage, 2005). Dominant etiological theories center on (a) abnormal
processing of normal brain proteins, (b) death of cells critical to maintaining appropriate
levels of brain chemicals, (c) chronic inflammation of the brain, (d) accumulation of heavy
metals in the brain, and (e) vascular factors that affect the health of blood vessels in the brain.
Risk factors include cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure, elevated cholesterol, diabetes, periodontal disease, obesity, and head trauma. AD has no cure. Effective treatments
are limited, and most require early diagnosis. Lifestyle strategies for healthy aging such
as exercise, social activity, mental activity, and a balanced diet may offer some protection
from or reserve against the disease. Higher intelligence, education, and occupational status
are also associated with reduced risk of developing the disease. In short, life experiences
that enhance an efficient cognitive network may also furnish a cognitive reserve that delays
onset of the disease (Scarmeas & Stern, 2004).
AD affects women and men at the same rates. However, the disease has particular
relevance for women. Age is the primary risk factor for AD. One person per thousand under
age 65 contracts the disease, while the number escalates to one in five over age 80. Women,
on average, live longer than men; hence, at any one time more women than men are living
with AD. More striking is that the rapid growth of women in older age groups translates
into half of all women over 80 years contracting the disease (National Women’s Health
Resource Centre, 2004).
Environmental Enrichment and Alzheimer’s Disease
Most biomedical research on AD in the past decade has focused on individual genes, brain
development, and the behavior of cells at the cellular, sub-cellular, and molecular scales.
However, almost all medical disorders are a function of both genetic and environmental
factors. One area of gene-environment interaction garnering increased attention is the role
of environmental enrichment in delaying, protecting against, and perhaps reversing effects of
AD (e.g., Adlard, Perreau, Pop, & Cotman, 2005). Environmental enrichment, defined as a
combination of complex inanimate and social stimulation, is often a variable in experiments
with animals in laboratory settings (Rosenzweig & Bennett, 1996).
Animals, including mice and rats, are routinely used to study neurodegenerative diseases like AD for several reasons. First, unlike humans, mice and rats have short life spans
and breed rapidly. Therefore progress of the disease can be modeled and remodeled quickly.
Second, mice and rats can be bred to simulate specific genetic characteristics of the disease
as they would appear in humans. Third, mice and rats imitate many of the pathological and
behavioral features of human conditions.
More False Dichotomies
489
Laboratory animals are typically housed in cages of standard configuration without
any additional stimulation. However, environmental enrichment may be introduced to test
the effects of socialization, novelty, and environmental complexity (e.g., play) on cognitive
functioning. An enriched environment may include controlled introduction of other animals
of the same species, toys, or running wheels, for example. Biomedical researchers then create
models that adjust the quantity and complexity of environmental stimulation by including
or removing animals and objects of different shapes and sizes. Finally they examine how
the various configurations of animals and/or items being tested affect the animals’ brains.
To date, enriched animal environments have been linked to improved memory and
learning, neural plasticity, and molecular changes in the developing brain (e.g., Frick &
Fernandez, 2003). Enriched environments also promote neurogenesis, which is the development of new brain cells. Most important is that these new brain cells have been found not
only in young animals as might be expected from developmental theory, but also in aged
animals (e.g., Van Praag, Kempermann, & Gage, 2000).
Until recently, social scientists assumed that cognitive aging meant neural decline and
inevitable loss of brain function. Now, the aging brain is understood to be elastic and capable
of considerable adaptation throughout the lifespan (Baltes, Staudinger, & Lindenberger,
1999). Biomedical researchers made similar early assumptions about the inflexibility of
brain cells and believed an individual was born with a fixed number of neurons that declined
with age. Therefore, the recent biomedical discovery that new brain cells can be generated
in older animals is noteworthy. In addition, because AD progressively kills brain cells,
establishing a causal link between environmental enrichment and neurogenesis is important.
Van Praag, Shubert, Zhao, and Gage (2005) found that an optimum way to generate new
brain cells in aged mice was through voluntary exercise and mental stimulation, which are
two important components of many play and leisure activities.
Although enriched environments control for the importance of single variables such as
socialization or general activity, the interaction of factors creates a rich environment (Van
Praag, Kempermann, & Gage, 2000). An example may be illustrative. Certain rare genes
guarantee an individual will develop Alzheimer’s disease. These genes have been found in
only a few hundred extended families worldwide and account for about 5% of Alzheimer’s
cases (Helmuth, 2001). Even if a person knows that she is genetically predisposed to AD,
can lifestyle factors like play delay onset of the disease? Or is the timing and progression of
the disease genetically predetermined? Scientists do not know the answer to these questions.
However, we suggest along with some biomedical researchers that considering the geneenvironment continuum in its entirety is the best way to arrive at answers.
Putting It Together: Play, Leisure, Environmental Enrichment,
and Alzheimer’s Disease
What have animal studies on environmental enrichment and AD got to do with play and
leisure? Few social scientists interested in play and leisure have made the connection perhaps
from lack of knowledge and/or interest or because two scientific facts must be accepted: that
biology is involved in play and leisure, and that genetics are important to human behavior
including play and leisure behavior. These claims may be discomforting to people who
believe that animals and humans are different in kind, rather than just degree. Many people
believe that the terms “biology” and “genetics” smack of “reductionism” and “genetic
or biological determinism.” We do not agree. Moreover, we agree with Ridley’s (2003)
argument that genes and the environment work symbiotically. We argue, therefore, that
social science researchers examining play and leisure need to know more about biology
and genetics, while biomedical environmental enrichment researchers need to know more
490
C. M. Yarnal et al.
about the social science of play and leisure. The following four points establish the logic of
our argument.
First, many animals including probably all mammals, numerous birds, some reptiles,
and possibly even a cephalopod (i.e., the octopus) play. Some aspects of mammal play
such as human children’s play and non-human primate play have received considerable
academic attention. Other aspects like play in older adult humans, and more specifically
in older women, have been completely neglected. Academic consensus suggests that play
exhibits certain characteristics that differentiate it from other types of behavioral activity
and that play is ubiquitous among mammals (Fagen, 1981). Social scientists, nevertheless,
tend to put human play and other animal play in separate categories and assume at most
limited connection between the two. They seem willing to recognize that animal play has
a biological component. They know that animals do and should play. Still, social science
researchers seem unwilling to countenance a biological component to human play. But,
people are mammals and mammals play.
Second, increasing evidence has emerged to support the idea that genes work in concert with the environment rather than in some either/or arrangement or some predetermined
proportion (e.g., a given behavior is 60% genetic and 40% learned; Ridley, 2003). A genetic basis to AD is undeniable. For example, people who have a parent or sibling with
Alzheimer’s are two to three times more likely to develop the disease than people who do
not (e.g., Eckman et al., 1997). A comprehensive study of Swedish twins ages 65 and over
found that identical twins, who are genetically identical, contracted AD at higher rates than
fraternal twins who on average share half their genes. The age of onset of the disease was
also closer for identical than fraternal twins suggesting that genetics play a role in whether
and when a person becomes demented. However, a number of identical twins did not conform to this pattern. A difference in age of onset within identical twin pairs suggested that
the interaction of genes with the environment was also an important determinant of dementia (Gatz et al., 2005). Perhaps engaging in play or leisure activities provides protection or
a reserve that might account for variation in disease onset in twins.
Third, individuals who are deprived of or unable to play can survive but may fail to
thrive. An absence of childhood play correlates with long-term developmental damage.
Scientists do not know if lack of play is damaging to older adults, particularly older women
nor whether play is linked to AD. Nobody has ever systematically examined these issues.
Studies have found links between some leisure activities like traveling, dancing, bowling,
knitting, gardening, puzzles, and games with delayed onset of AD (e.g., Scarmeas et al.,
2001). Researchers have also found links between environmental enrichment and AD. Given
that play is one form of environmental enrichment, we believe that it can be instrumental
to Alzheimer’s prevention. Furthermore, we contend that play’s unique features such as
spontaneity, complete absorption, experimentation, non-seriousness, and fun should help
delay the disease.
Fourth, work in the biomedical sciences on Alzheimer’s disease with its focus on biology, physics, and chemistry appears to proceed with little consideration of social sciences.
Similarly, research in the social sciences with its focus on psychology, sociology, and economics proceeds as if biology and genetics do not exist (Barkow, Cosmides, & Tooby, 1992).
More important is that researchers who examine human play and leisure in AD have so far
limited themselves to social science perspectives (e.g., Dupuis & Smale, 2000). Perhaps this
fact is because most social scientists are unwilling to consider, much less accept, biology
and genetics as explanatory variables for human behavior. To be fair, the same argument
could be made for biomedical researchers’ intolerance of social science.
In conclusion, we think that social scientists studying play and leisure limit their understanding if they fail to capitalize on opportunities to collaborate with biomedical researchers.
More False Dichotomies
491
We also believe that social science research on play and leisure can contribute to biomedical understanding of Alzheimer’s disease. If we can eliminate the false dichotomy between
the social and biomedical sciences, the resulting fusion of ideas can bring exciting new
knowledge and theoretical development to the study of AD, leisure research, and the broader
scientific enterprise.
References
Adlard, P., Perreau, V., Pop, V., & Cotman, C. (2005). Voluntary exercise decreases amyloid load in a
transgenic mouse model of Alzheimer’s disease. The Journal of Neuroscience, 25(1), 4217–4221.
Alzheimer’s Association (2005). Statistics about Alzheimer’s disease. Retrieved August 2, 2005 from
http://www.alz.org/AboutAD/Statistics.asp.
Baltes, P., Staudinger, U., & Lindenberger, U. (1999). Lifespan psychology: Theory and application
to intellectual functioning. Annual Reviews in Psychology, 50, 471–507.
Barkow, J., Cosmides, L., & Tooby, J. (Eds.) (1992). The adapted mind. Evolutionary psychology and
the generation of culture. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.
Dupuis, S. & Smale, B. (2000). Bittersweet journeys: Meanings of leisure in the institution-based
caregiving context. Journal of Leisure Research, 32(3), 303–340.
Eckman, C., Mehta, N., Crook, R., Perez-tur, J., Prihar, G., & Pfeiffer, E. (1997). A new pathogenic
mutation in the APP gene (I716V) increases the proportion of A beta 42(43). Human Molecular
Genetics, 12(6), 2087–2089.
Fagen, R. (1981). Animal play behavior. New York: Oxford University Press.
Frick, K. & Fernandez, S. (2003). Enrichment enhances spatial memory and increases syaptophysin
in aged female mice. Neurobiology of Aging, 24(4), 615–626.
Gatz, M., Fratiglioni, L., Johansson, B., Berg, S., Mortimer, J., & Reynolds, C. (2005). Complete
ascertainment of dementia in the Swedish Twin registry: The HARMONY study. Neurobiology
of Aging, 26(4), 439–447.
Helmuth, L. (2001). Detangling Alzheimer’s disease. Science of Aging Knowledge Environment,
43(1), 2.
Herbert, L., Scherr, P., Bienies, J., Bennett, D., & Evans, D. (2003). Alzheimer disease in the U.S.
population: Prevalence estimates using the 2000 census. Archives of Neurology, 60(8), 1119–
1122.
Kennedy, D. & Norman, C. (2005). What don’t we know? Science Magazine, 309(5731), 75.
National Women’s Health Resource Centre (2004). Women and Alzheimer’s disease. Red Bank, NJ:
National Women’s Health Resource Centre.
Ridley, M. (2003). Nature via nurture: Genes, experience, and what makes us human. New York:
HarperCollins.
Rosenzweig, M. & Bennett, E. (1996). Psychobiology of plasticity: Effects of training and experience
on brain and behavior. Behavioral and Brain Research, 78, 57–75.
Scarmeas, N. Levy, G., Tang, M., Manly, J., & Stern, Y. (2001). Influence of leisure activity on the
incidence of Alzheimer’s disease. Neurology, 57(12), 2236–2242.
Scarmeas, N. & Stern, Y. (2004). Cognitive reserve: Implications for diagnosis and prevention of
Alzheimer’s disease. Current Neurology and Neuroscience Reports, 4(5), 374–380.
Spires, T. & Hannan, J. (2005). Nature, nurture and neurology: Gene-environment interactions in
neurodegenerative disease. FEBS Journal, 272, 2347–2361.
Van Praag, H., Kempermann, G., & Gage, F. (2000). Neural consequences of environmental enrichment. Nature Reviews, 1(December), 191–198.
Van Praag, H., Kempermann, G., & Gage, F. (2005). Nature, nurture and neurology: Gene-environment
interactions in neurodegenerative disease. The FEBS Journal, 272, 2347–2361.
Van Praag, H., Shubert, T., Zhao, C., & Gage, F. (2005). Exercise enhances learning and hippocampal
neurogenesis in aged mice. The Journal of Neuroscience, 25(38), 8680–8685.
Leisure Sciences, 27: 93–109, 2005
C Taylor & Francis Inc.
Copyright
ISSN: 0149-0400 print / 1521-0588 online
DOI: 10.1080/01490400590912006
Examining Relationships Among Perceptions of Self,
Episode-Specific Evaluations, and Overall
Satisfaction with a Leisure Activity
BONGKOO LEE
Department of Tourism Management
DongEui University
Busan, S. Korea
C. SCOTT SHAFER
Department of Recreation, Park and Tourism Sciences
Texas A&M University
College Station, Texas, USA
INHO KANG
Department of Tourism Management
KeMyong University
Daegu, S. Korea
Many researchers have investigated leisure experience as a process that includes interactions with others and the environment. Interactions during leisure are known to
influence the experience. Based on this tradition, the purpose of this study was to investigate how emotions might relate to interactions that an individual has during leisure
experience and to examine the relationships among emotions, episode-specific evaluations, and overall satisfaction. A research model was suggested based on Affect Control
Theory, the confirmation/disconfirmation paradigm, Mehrabian and Russell’s (1974)
approach-avoidance concept, and the sub-domain dependency theory of leisure satisfaction. Findings from analyses of experiences suggested that linkages existed among
confirmation of self-identity (a goal), resulting emotions, episode-specific evaluations,
and finally to overall satisfaction with a leisure activity.
Keywords self-identity, confirmation/disconfirmation, emotions, episode-specific
evaluations, leisure satisfaction, Affect Control Theory
Few aspects are as fundamental to the concept of leisure as satisfaction. Two approaches
have been dominant in dealing with leisure satisfaction. The first approach has been the
“end/effect/output” perspective that has focused on explaining determinants of leisure satisfaction. Leisure satisfaction literature contains three lines of research within this approach:
confirmation/disconfirmation of expectations as a determinant of leisure satisfaction (Ditton,
Graefe, & Fedler, 1980; Lounsbury & Hoopes, 1985; Vaske, Donnelly, & Heberline, 1980),
Received 29 January, 2003; accepted 17 April, 2004.
Address correspondence to BongKoo Lee, Department of Tourism Management, DongEui University, Busan,
614-714, S. Korea. E-mail: bongkoo1@due.ac.kr
93
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B. K. Lee et al.
the role of emotions (Ajzen & Driver, 1992; Floyd, 1997; Westbrook, 1987), and the development of sub-domains of leisure experience that contribute to leisure satisfaction (Ditton
et al., 1980; Oliver, 1993; Yi, 1990). The second approach is the “means/cause/input” perspective that has investigated the role of leisure satisfaction on other realms of our lives
including life satisfaction (Hersh, 1990; Patterson & Carpenter, 1994; Ragheb & Griffith,
1982; Wearing, 1989) or post-consumption behaviors such as repeated use, intention to
repurchase, word of mouth, and loyalty (Bigne, Sanchez, & Sanchez, 2001; Petric, Morais,
& Norman, 2001; Ragheb, 1980).
Recently researchers have shown greater interest in the dynamic nature of leisure
experience (Lee & Shafer, 2002; Mannell & Iso-Ahola, 1987; Stewart, 1998; Stewart &
Hull, 1992). The dynamic leisure experience has been conceptualized as an outcome that is
dependent upon a sequence of episodes (i.e., interactions between a leisure participant and
other features, including people and physical attributes in the natural environment). A leisure
participant’s overall experience is a sum of experience parts formed during episodes over
time in a leisure setting. Each episode has a potential to confirm/disconfirm expectations in a
leisure setting. Though the first approach has contributed to improving our understanding of
leisure experiences, research has not provided a deep-rooted foundation for understanding:
1) a leisure participant’s response when an expectation is confirmed or disconfirmed as
a result of an episode; 2) how a person evaluates an episode that confirms or disconfirms
his/her expectation; 3) the relationship between his/her response to an episode and evaluation
of the episode and; 4) the role of these episode specific evaluations on the overall leisure
experience.
We believe that concepts (i.e., confirmation/disconfirmation, emotion, sub-domains of
leisure experience) identified as determinants of leisure satisfaction in the first approach are
linked. For example, confirmation/disconfirmation leads to emotion, emotion determines
the negative or positive nature of sub-domains that comprise leisure experience, and finally
the nature of sub-domains of leisure experience determine overall leisure satisfaction.
The purpose of this study was to investigate the linkages in the end/effect/output perspective of leisure satisfaction and to suggest an integrated model of the three concepts with
the support of empirical evidence. The theoretical framework for this study centered on three
underpinnings: Affect Control Theory (ACT), approach-avoidance, and sub-domain dependency theory. ACT (Averett & Heise, 1987; Heise, 1979, 1985, 1987, 1989, 1992a, 1992b;
MacKinnon, 1994; Robinson & Smith-Lovin, 1992; Schneider & Heise, 1995) contributed
to the first linkage (i.e., confirmation/disconfirmation and emotion). Mehrabian and Russell’s (1974) conceptualization of approach-avoidance contributed to the linkage between
emotion and the nature of sub-domains of leisure experience. Sub-domain dependency theory (Ditton et al., 1980; Oliver, 1993; Yi, 1990) contributed to the linkage between the nature
of sub-domains of leisure experience and overall leisure satisfaction. The development of
the integrated model could improve our understanding of how aggregate experiences in
leisure are formed and evaluated by leisure participants.
Literature Review
This section is organized to review previous literature on constructs related to leisure experience and their linkages.
Self-Identity
Researchers in leisure involvement have investigated identity formation and identity affirmation processes in leisure (Dimanche & Samdahl, 1994; Havitz & Dimanche, 1997; Iwasaki
& Havitz, 1998; Kim, Scott, & Crompton, 1997; McIntyre, 1989). For example, Haggard
Relationships Among Leisure Experience Constructs
95
and Williams (1992) argued that leisure activities embody distinct and measurable identity images, and leisure participants select activities partially on the basis of these identity
images. Participants develop self-identities through participation in the activity. Repeated
participation in the activity enhances these self-identities, and people keep participating
in the activity to confirm their identities and maintain a source of pride and self-worth.
Baldwin and Norris (1999) summarized this process by saying that “one’s leisure identity
may motivate one to participate in specific activities and the activity may become more
salient to identity as it serves the self-expression of one’s abilities (p. 4).”
Two points are worth mentioning with regard to the identity formation and identity
affirmation process. First, people develop a leisure-related self-identity through leisure participation. According to the situational constructionist view of identity theory (Alexander &
Wiley, 1987; Crocker, 1999; Hormuth, 1990; Jackson, 1988; Mead, 1934; Stryker, 1980,
1990), this leisure identity is one of multiple identities evoked for a specific situation.
Second, self-identity serves as a standard or reference point of human behavior (Burke &
Reitzes, 1991). People construct, understand, and evaluate social situations based on their
self-identities. Consequently, they seek to maintain these identities because they function as
key reference points for functioning in daily life. What happens when their identities are not
affirmed? Affect Control Theory (Averett & Heise, 1987; Heise, 1979, 1985, 1987, 1989,
1992a, 1992b; MacKinnon, 1994; Robinson & Smith-Lovin, 1992; Schneider & Heise,
1995) provides a useful explanation for this question.
Linkage Between Confirmation/Disconfirmation and Emotions: Based on Affect
Control Theory (ACT)
Symbolic interactionism suggests that the core of our social life is a process of interaction
that stresses the symbolic character of social action (Lauer & Handel, 1977; MacKinnon,
1994). Language is the most dominant symbolic character because it is universal and transcends the subjectivity of individual consciousness (Mead, 1934). Thus, the natural function
of language is to evoke intersubjectivity resulting from the arousal of the same cognition in
self and others. For instance, the word “fire” evokes a similar understanding and response
(i.e., intersubjectivity) among people who share the language. Social objectivity exists to the
extent that what individuals say in social interaction is understandable to both themselves
and to others.
On the other hand, there has been a widespread recognition that our social interaction
depends upon affective meanings associated with language. MacKinnon (1994) says: “The
names with which we designate all kinds of social stimuli evoke affective associations such
that language functions as linguistic warehouse, so to speak, for storing affective meaning
(p. 3).” Affective meanings also create symmetrical responses among people within a culture,
thus evoking intersubjectivity among them (Heise, 1979; Osgood, May, & Miron, 1975).
The role of language in eliciting affective meanings is a ground for Affect Control
Theory. ACT assumes that social interaction is conducted in terms of the social cognitions
of interactants. Without having a plausible interpretation of what is going on, an interactant
cannot proceed to interact meaningfully with others (Heise, 1979; MacKinnon, 1994).
A plausible interpretation starts with identifying the constituents within the institutional
context where they are assembled. For example, when a person visits a baseball field to
watch a game, the person identifies himself/herself as a fan and others as players or fans. Of
course, the person’s self-identity as a fan is situation specific. In another situation, the person
would identify himself/herself differently. The social cognitions are organized in terms of
grammatical structures including languages that consist minimally of an actor (i.e., subject)
performing an act (i.e., verb) on another (i.e., objects) in a setting. Thus, in the previous
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example, the person may interpret the situation like: “I am surrounded by other fans” or
“Other fans boo the hitter.”
ACT furthermore assumes that the various constituents of social cognitions evoke
culturally specific affective meanings that vary in intensity and direction along several
qualitatively distinct dimensions represented by evaluation, potency, and activity (EPA)
(Kemper, 1978; Mehrabian, 1976; Osgood et al., 1975; Osgood, Suci, & Tannenbaum, 1957;
Russell, 1980). In this sense, ACT embraces Mead’s premise that language creates shared
objects of consciousness but supposes that all social cognitions represented by language
evoke affective meanings. ACT is formulated with the level of the affective meanings evoked
by cognitions.
ACT proposes that emotions people experience in their daily life are related to their
situation-specific self-identities (Averett & Heise, 1987; Heise, 1987; MacKinnon, 1994;
Smith-Lovin, 1990). As all social cognitions including self-identity evoke affective meanings measured with EPA dimensions, people establish fundamental sentiments by representing how good, powerful, and active they are in a given situation. An episode (e.g., an
interaction between an individual and other people or things in a daily setting) may change
the affective meanings of self, making the person feel better or worse, stronger or weaker,
and/or more active or passive. As a result of the episode, the person may associate different affective meanings with his/her self-identity in terms of EPA dimensions. These are
called transient sentiments. The difference between transient sentiments and fundamental
sentiments is called deflection.
ACT proposes that people experience an emotion when a deflection in, or divergence
from, affective, meanings associated with self-identity occurs. When the deflection is large,
the transient sentiments determine the resulting emotion. Positive deflections lead to emotions that contain positive tones and negative deflections result in emotions that contain
negative tones. When the deflection is small, the fundamental sentiments determine the
resulting emotion because the episode does not alter them significantly. Each episode that a
person encounters while in a situation has the potential to change fundamental sentiments
associated with self-identity.
In summary, ACT suggests that, since our interactions with others and the environment
are primarily concerned with maintaining our self-identity (Averett & Heise, 1987; Heise,
1979; MacKinnon, 1994; Robinson & Smith-Lovin, 1992; Smith-Lovin, 1990), our emotional reactions result from the extent to which social episodes impact affective meanings
associated with our self-identity (i.e., fundamental sentiments). In this way, ACT suggests
a clear linkage from confirmation/disconfirmation to emotion.
Linkage Between Emotions and Episode-Specific Evaluations
Two lines of research have stressed the role of emotion in the consumption evaluation process. One has investigated the role of emotion in satisfaction with consumption (Dube &
Menon, 1998; Floyd, 1997; Oliver, 1993; Oliver & DeSarbo, 1988; Westbrook, 1987; Yi,
1990). Yi (1990) suggested that satisfaction is a summary result that occurs after affective processes take place in consumption experiences. This suggestion has been supported
empirically in a variety of contexts (e.g., Dube & Menon, 1998; Oliver, 1993; Westbrook,
1987). The other line of thought has focused on the role of emotions in the evaluations
of sequential episodes (Dube & Morgan, 1998; Mehrabian & Russell, 1974). Dube and
Morgan (1998) suggested, “There is a general pattern of change in consumption emotions
and satisfaction that naturally unfolds over time in most extended service transactions and
that this pattern is linked to [overall] satisfaction (p. 310).” Mehrabian and Russell (1974)
also suggested that, depending upon the affective states, people show either approach or
avoidance behaviors in a physical or social environment. Though Mehrabian and Russell
Relationships Among Leisure Experience Constructs
97
investigated the relationship between affective states and approach-avoidance behavior with
a physical or social environment (i.e., shopping center), we believe, if any physical or social
environment is composed of many pieces of small physical or social environments, the same
logic can be applied to each piece. Thus, if a person feels a positive emotion from a specific
episode, the person might approach the experience. The person might avoid an experience
if a negative emotion results from the episode. Consequently several emotional experiences
and evaluations occur as pieces of an experience develop.
In this study, the concepts of approach and avoidance were operationalized as perceptions of contentment and conflict. We maintain that emotions lead to immediate evaluations
of episodes encountered and result in either contentment or perceived conflict. For example,
if a person experiences a positive emotion as a result of an episode, the person would be
content with the episode, whereas if the person experiences a negative emotion, conflict
would be perceived in the episode. Blahna, Smith, and Anderson (1995) also suggested that
goal disconfirmation results in frustration and discontentment, and these emotions, in turn,
form the “prime cause” of overt conflict. We suggest the first proposition along with the
first research hypothesis based on this discussion.
Proposition 1: Leisure participants’ emotional experiences will be related to episodespecific evaluations.
H1: Episodes producing positive emotions will be more favorably evaluated than those
producing negative emotions.
Linkage Between Episode-Specific Evaluations and Overall Satisfaction
Many researchers have suggested that leisure satisfaction is a function of a wide range of
specific and separate elements of the experience (Decker, Brown, & Gutierrez, 1980; Ditton
et al., 1980; Herrick & McDonald, 1992; Hultsman, 1998; Lounsbury & Hoopes, 1985;
Manning, 1986). Both situational (e.g., the presence of litter, biting insects, too many other
people) and/or subjective factors (e.g., perceptions of crowding, the extent to which goals or
expectations were fulfilled, perceptions of resource impacts) are suggested as elements of the
experience. For example, Graefe and Fedler (1986) and Whisman and Hollenhorst (1998)
found that leisure satisfaction was influenced directly by people’s subjective evaluations of
the elements of a recreational trip and indirectly by the situational aspects of the activity.
Herrick and McDonald (1992) examined the effects of eight specific facets (i.e., encounters,
time waiting, parking, setting attributes, group behavior, perceived crowding, use level, and
previous experience) on the overall satisfaction of a white-water recreation experience.
Results revealed that satisfaction with the setting attributes added the most to visitors’
overall satisfaction, while time waiting detracted the most.
We suggest that overall satisfaction is determined by a series of episode-specific evaluations (i.e., how many times was a leisure participant content versus perceiving conflict
with regard to episodes encountered). Based on this discussion, we suggest the second
proposition and the second research hypothesis.
Proposition 2: Leisure participants’ overall satisfaction is a function of the cumulative
effects of episode-specific evaluations.
H2: Leisure participants’ overall satisfaction with the on-site experience will be higher if
they experience more contentment than conflicts with episodes encountered while on
site.
Figure 1 provides a research model that summarizes all linkages (i.e., confirmation/
disconfirmation to emotions, emotions to event-specific evaluations, and event-specific
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B. K. Lee et al.
FIGURE 1 Research model of relationships among leisure experience constructs.
evaluations to overall satisfaction) previously discussed. People try to maintain a balance in
affective meanings associated with their self-identities (i.e., fundamental sentiments), represented by EPA dimensions, in a leisure setting involving social interactions (or episodes).
Each episode has the potential to confirm, or not, the fundamental sentiments associated
with their self-identity and eventually to result in an emotional experience. Finally the
accumulated results of evaluations influence their overall satisfaction level.
Method
Operationalization of Major Constructs
Self-identity. In this study, self-identity was defined as a person’s self-perception while on
a multi-use trail engaged in a recreational activity. To measure this concept, an open-ended
request was made: “Using a noun, please provide the most appropriate description about
who you are when you are on this trail today.”
Fundamental sentiments associated with one’s self-identity. Fundamental sentiments
(FS) refer to affective meanings associated with self-identity. FS was measured using three
EPA dimensions (Averett & Heise, 1987; Heise, 1979; Osgood et al., 1975;
Osgood et al., 1957). Each dimension had three adjective pairs, thus a total of nine adjective
pairs (i.e., good-bad, pleasant-unpleasant, nice-awful, strong-weak, powerful-powerless,
big-little, active-inactive, excitable-calm, and fast-slow) were presented as semantic differential scales having nine response categories. Respondents were asked to rate each pair
after reading the question of “You identified yourself as
. It is . . . . . .” Responses
were converted into numbers from left (+4) to right (−4) and neutral (0).
Episodes. To capture memorable episodes, participants were asked to think about the
episodes they had experienced while they were on the trail and to list the episodes (up to
five) chronologically from earliest and the latest.
Transient sentiments associated with one’s self-identity. Transient sentiments (TS) refer
to affective meanings associated with one’s situated self-identity changed by an episode.
For each episode listed participants were asked to rate their self-identities in terms of the
EPA dimensions. A question after each episode read: “You described yourself as (put your
noun here) on the trail today. How did you feel about yourself after this episode?” She/he
was asked to repeat the semantic differential pairs for each episode she/he listed. The pairs
and response categories were identical to those of FS. However, the order of presentation
of the nine pairs and the orientation of each pair (i.e., right to left) were randomly ordered
to reduce response bias.
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Emotions. Emotions refer to reactions to specific stimuli, thus they are ephemeral in
nature (Batson, Shaw, & Oleson, 1992; Thayer, 1989). In this study emotions are defined
as reactions to the influences of episodes on affective meanings of self-identity. To predict
emotional experiences that each participant might have had after each episode, both transient
sentiments and fundamental sentiments associated with self-identity were used.
Episode-specific evaluations. Two types of episode-specific evaluations were used:
contentment and conflict. The concept of contentment was operationally defined as a
type of episode-specific evaluation of a pleasant experience that helped maintain selfidentity. Two items were adopted from the work of Csikszentmihalyi and his colleagues
(Csikszentmihalyi & Graefe, 1980; Graefe, Csikszentmihalyi, & Gianinno, 1983). They
were: “I was content to be in that place at that time” and “I would rather have been some
place else at that time.” Respondents were asked to indicate their level of agreement with the
statements after each episode on a 5-point Likert-type scale (1: not at all, 5: very much). The
second item was reverse coded. The concept of conflict was operationally defined as a type
of episode-specific evaluation of unpleasant experience that detracted from self-identity.
Items used were: “the encounter with this episode while on the trail was enjoyable,” “the
episode encountered interfered with my enjoyment on the trail,” and “the episode encountered actually caused me problems.” Participants were again asked to indicate a level of
agreement with the statements after each episode on a 5-point Likert-type scale ranging
from 1, strongly disagree to 5, strongly agree. The first item was reverse coded.
Overall satisfaction. Satisfaction was defined as an overall evaluation of a leisure
experience and was operationally defined as a pleasant state of mind resulting from the
effects of cumulative episode-specific evaluations. To measure satisfaction, we adapted five
items from Ditton et al. (1980), including: “I thoroughly enjoyed my being on the trail,”
“I cannot imagine a better place to recreate than this trail,” “My trip to this trail was well
worth the cost,” “I do not want to recreate any more at this trail,” and “I am disappointed
with some aspects of my being here.” Participants were asked to respond to these items on
a 5-point Likert-type scale (1: not at all, 5: very much). The fourth and fifth items were
reverse coded.
Data Collection Procedure
The study was conducted at the Brays Bayou Trail (BBT), a multi-use trail in Houston,
Texas. The BBT is 21.7 miles long and consists of mostly asphalt surface (though some
portions are soil). It is close to several universities and a major medical center complex and
is used for commuting as well as for a variety of recreational activities such as bicycling,
walking, running, and roller-skating.
An on-site survey was conducted at the BBT during November 1998 through December
1998. A survey booth was placed at an entrance point of the BBT. One of the authors
conducted the survey from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. over four randomly selected days (including
two weekends) during the sampling period. Trail users who were passing by the booth
and recreating on the trail (as opposed to commuting) were approached on the basis of
convenience and asked to participate in this study. Potential participants were told they
would be rewarded with a bottle of cold water and that a $25 prize would be awarded by
lottery to two respondents among people who completed the on-site survey. The purpose of
the study was explained and a questionnaire and instructions were given to trail users who
agreed to participate in the study.
Two hundred and seventeen trail users were approached. A total of 145 trail users
(or 67.7% of those approached) participated in the survey. Thirty-four participants of the
145 respondents did not provide complete answers in the survey (i.e., they did not give
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full answers to at least one set of questions composed of episode description, fundamental
sentiments, transient sentiments, episode-specific evaluations, and overall satisfaction), thus
their responses were excluded from analyses (the effective response rate was 51.1%).
Data Analysis
A series of principal component factor analyses with varimax rotation were used to check
validity and reliability for scales used. The primary concerns were if: 1) the three items
intended to measure each of the EPA dimensions loaded on their respective dimensions;
and 2) the items intended to measure each construct (i.e., contentment, conflict, and overall
satisfaction) exhibited unidimensionality. Cronbach’s alphas were used to check internalconsistency of pre-determined items.
Results showed that, except for the Activity dimension, constructs of EPA did measure
what they were intended to measure. The items used for the Evaluation and the Potency
dimensions were highly loaded on only one relevant factor. Cronbach’s alpha coefficients
were greater than .60 in both dimensions. Therefore, composite scores of each construct were
calculated for further analysis. However, for the Activity dimension, an initial examination
of the three items (inactive-active, slow-fast, and calm-excitable) showed that the calmexcitable item was somewhat separate from the other two items. Consequently, Cronbach’s
alpha coefficients ranged from .24 to .60. The percent of total variance was greatly improved
after removing the calm-excitable item (from 45% to 82%). Cronbach’s alpha coefficients
were also improved (between the range of .51 and .84). Therefore, the remaining two items
(inactive-active and slow-fast) were used to measure the Activity dimension. Results also
showed that items intended to measure other constructs (i.e., contentment, conflict, and
overall satisfaction) were appropriate because they loaded on relevant factors. Cronbach’s
alpha coefficients were .89, .79, and .66, respectively. Composite scores of each construct
were calculated for further analysis.
INTERACT II software developed by Heise (1991) was used to analyze the results
of interactions between trail users and others on the trail. To predict the emotional experiences people have from social interactions, Averett and Heise (1987) asked subjects to rate
emotions (e.g., angry), identities (e.g., father), and emotions-identity combination (e.g., an
angry father) separately in terms of EPA profiles. Emotion-identity combination equations
were obtained by regressing ratings of emotions-identity combinations on ratings of emotions and identities. From the equations, they derived an emotion equation that describes
how identities and impressions from episodes imply emotion. The equation is:
Pε = (P + Fse Qe )−1 (τs − Ffs − d).
(1)
where P : a matrix of coefficients for the emotion profile
F : a matrix of estimated coefficients for the fundamental self-identity
Q : a matrix containing a scalar coefficients for the interaction
between emotion and identity
τ : the transient impression self-profile
fs : the fundamental self-profile
d : a vector of equation constants
The equation produces a profile of emotions that people are likely to experience based
on EPA scores. When scores of fundamental sentiments and transient sentiments are put
into the INTERACT II program, an EPA score that a person might feel is calculated and
provides five emotional lexicons that fall as close to given EPA profiles from its emotion
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101
dictionary. The first emotion in the list is the emotion that has the closest EPA profiles in
the dictionary to EPA profiles calculated by the emotion equations. The second emotion
in the list is the emotion that has the second closest EPA profiles in the dictionary to EPA
profiles calculated by the emotion equations, and so on. For this study only one emotion was
selected after each episode encountered based on its perceived relevance to the situation.
The last step was to test research hypotheses. For this purpose, ANOVA was utilized.
Results
Sample Characteristics
Fifty four percent of trail users were male. The most frequent activity was bicycling (46%),
followed by walking (22%), running/jogging (21%), and in-line skating (4%). On average,
respondents had participated in their activity for more than 8 years and participated in their
trail activity more than 15 times per month. About 80% of their participation occurred on
the BBT. When they engaged in the activity, they spent an average of 77 minutes.
When asked to describe themselves (i.e., self-identity) while on the BBT, respondents
provided 47 different self-identities. These self-identities were grouped according to connotative meaning. The descriptive nouns used to identify self are presented in Table 1. The
most frequent self-identities were related to recreation (e.g., athlete, cyclist, runner, jogger,
competitor, etc.). The next most frequent self-identities fit into a category related to thinking or contemplation (18.0%), followed by a category of social role related identity (e.g.,
mother, participant, observer, veteran, etc.). Four trail users identified themselves with their
gender.
Influences of Episodes on Self-Identity and Resulting Emotions
One hundred and eleven trail users in the sample related a total of 427 episodes. On average respondents provided 3.85 episodes. Table 2 shows an example of emotion analysis
TABLE 1 Situated Self-Identities Identified by Brays Bayou Trail Users
Categories
n
%
Recreation (athlete, biker/cyclist, runner/jogger,
walker/treader, jock, sporter, work outer, active person,
adventurer, fat/out-of-shape, expeditioner, fast-lover,
outdoorsman, competitor, player)
57
51.4
Contemplation (thinker, semi-thinker, mediator)
20
18.0
Social role (mother, grandmother, friend, planner,
sweet-monster, veteran, participant, observer)
12
10.8
8
7.2
4
3.6
10
9.0
Free person (free soul, care free, relaxer, stress-reliever,
daydreamer)
Gender role (man, woman)
Other (aggressor, bird-watcher, bird, lion, panther, survivor,
shark, slug, wind)
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TABLE 2 Example of Confirmation/Disconfirmation and Resulting Emotion Analyses
Sex
Events encountered
by order
Female Fundamental
sentiments
Saw a lot of
fish
Saw birds
fishing
Met a family
walking
Watched the
current of
water
Saw old man
doing exercise
EPA
+1.33
+1.00
+2.50
+3.67
+2.00
+2.50
+3.33
+2.00
+2.50
+4.00
+1.67
+0.50
+2.67
+1.00
+1.00
+2.67
+0.67
+2.00
Resulting emotions
Selected
emotion
Forgiving/friendly/cheerful/
generous/affectionate
Cheerful
Friendly/forgiving/cheerful
affectionate/generous
Cheerful
Forgiving/generous/friendly/
compassionate/peaceful
Friendly
Generous/compassionate/peaceful/
appreciative/forgiving
Peaceful
Affectionate/warm/cheerful/
compassionate/friendly
Affectionate
predicted from INTERACT II. Differences have been found in the emotional feelings of
males and females (Heise, 1979; Smith-Lovin, 1987). Therefore, when analyzing the emotions, INTERACT II uses the relevant dictionary for each sex to predict emotions.
In Table 2 a female respondent identified fundamental sentiments of +1.33 (mean of
Evaluation dimension), +1.00 (mean of Potency dimension), and +2.50 (mean of Activity
dimension) when she entered the trail. She encountered five episodes along the trail. The first
episode was “saw a lot of fish.” This episode led to transient sentiments of +3.67, +2.00,
and +2.50 representing a positive deflection (+1.33, +1.00, and +2.50). This episode
made her feel better and more potent than before, but no different in terms of activity. Table
2 shows that as a result of this episode, INTERACT predicted she would experience an
emotion like cheerful. The second episode, “saw birds fishing,” also led to transient sentiments of +3.33, +2.00, and +2.50. Again, compared to her fundamental sentiments, this
episode made her feel better and more potent, but no different in terms of activity. As a
result of this episode, INTERACT again predicted that she would experience an emotion
like cheerful. The third episode (“met a family walking”) created transient sentiments of
+4.00, +1.67, and +.50, making her feel better, slightly more potent, but less active resulting in a friendly feeling. The fourth episode (“watched the current of water”) changed
sentiments to +2.67, +1.00, and +1.00, leading her to feel better but less active, and no
different in terms of potency. This episode made her feel peaceful. After encountering the
final episode (“saw old man doing exercise”), sentiments associated with her self-identity
again changed to +2.67, +0.67, and +2.00. The nature of episode made her feel better,
slightly less potent, and slightly less active. This episode should make her feel affectionate.
Consequently, the emotions that the female had across episodes were cheerful, cheerful,
friendly, peaceful, and affectionate. Emotional analyses of all 111 respondents were conducted in this manner to examine the impacts of episodes on leisure participants’ emotional
experiences.
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103
TABLE 3 Classification of Emotions Predicted from INTERACT II
Positive emotions
Negative emotions
Affectionate, amused, at-ease, appreciative,
awe-struck, cheerful, contented, carefree,
compassionate, calm, enthusiastic, excited,
ecstatic, friendly, forgiving, generous,
grateful, glad, happy, humble,
light-hearted, moved, over-joyed, pleased,
peaceful, proud, passionate, relaxed,
relieved, secure, serene, satisfied, warm
Afraid, crushed, contemptuous,
depressed, desperate, displeased,
empty, gloomy, grouchy, grief-stricken,
letdown, lonely, melancholy,
overwhelmed, panicked, petrified,
remorseful, sad, sorry, sorrowful, tense,
terrified, upset, worried
Emotions derived from episode encounters were considered an effect agent in this
study. However, the type and amount of information on emotions varied across respondents
because their interactional experiences (i.e., episodes encountered and their influences on
self-identity) were not identical. Thus, for easier interpretation emotions of all 111 respondents were grouped into two broad categories (emotions of respondents result in 57
different types): positive or negative. For this purpose, all 57 emotions were listed and distributed to three judges (one professor and two American graduate students) for grouping.
Disagreements occurred on two emotions: overwhelmed and awe-struck. In the case of
“overwhelmed,” two judges put it into the negative category, while one judge put it into
the positive category. Thus, the emotion was categorized as a negative emotion. On the
other hand, in the case of “awe-struck,” two judges categorized it as positive and one as
negative. Thus it was classified as a positive emotion. Thirty-three emotions were classified
as positive and the remaining 24 were classified as negative. Table 3 shows the result of this
classification.
Emotions and Episode-Specific Evaluations
To investigate the relationship between emotions and episode evaluations, the episodes were
coded according to the emotions experienced. If a trail user had a positive emotion after an
episode encounter, the event was coded as 1; if he or she had a negative emotion, it was
coded as 2. This measure became the independent variable. Dependent variables were the
contentment and conflict scores.
Table 4 shows that when trail users had positive emotions from episodes encountered,
they tended to be more contented with the episodes than when they experienced negative
TABLE 4 ANOVA of Mean Differences in Event-Specific Evaluations by Type of
Emotion Experienced
Event-specific appraisal
Type of emotion
Contentment
Positive
Negative
Positive
Negative
Conflict
a
n
Meana
F Ratio
F Prob.
290
130
290
130
4.21
2.53
1.44
2.91
230.12
.00 ∗∗
273.59
.00 ∗∗
Based on 5 point Likert-type scale (1: not at all, 5: very much).
Statistically significant at α = .01.
∗∗
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emotions from episodes encountered. Mean scores were 4.21 and 2.53, respectively, and
this mean difference was statistically significant (F = 230.12, p < .001). In the case of
the perception of conflict, the result revealed an opposite pattern. When respondents felt
negative emotions from encountered episodes they perceived a higher level of conflict (mean
= 2.91) than when they had positive emotions (mean = 1.44). This mean difference was also
statistically significant (F = 273.59, p < .001). These findings indicated that the evaluations
of the episodes were significantly related to the emotions experienced due to those episodes,
thus hypothesis 1 was supported.
Episode-Specific Evaluations and Overall Satisfaction
In order to test hypothesis 2, a series of data manipulations were conducted. First, for each
episode specific evaluation, both the contentment score and the conflict score were obtained
by calculating mean scores of each construct. If the mean score of contentment was higher
than that of conflict, a person was considered more contented with the episode and coded as
1. On the other hand, if the mean score of conflict was higher than that of the contentment
score, the person was treated as perceiving more conflict from the episode and coded as 2.
At the individual level, the proportion of contented episodes to the total episodes was
calculated. For example, if a person was contented with three episodes (i.e., three episodes
were coded as 1) and perceived conflict in two episodes (i.e., two episodes were coded as
2) in five episode-specific evaluations, the proportion was 60% contented to 40% conflict.
If the proportion of a person’s contentment was greater than 50%, he/she was judged
to be more contented across the episode-specific evaluations and was coded as 1. If the
percent was equal to or less than 50%, the person was judged to perceive more conflict
across the evaluations and was coded as 2. A total of 87 trail users were classified as
members of the contented group. The remaining 24 were the “perceived more conflict”
group. This grouping became the independent variable and the overall satisfaction score
was the dependent variable.
Results of a one-way ANOVA showed that the cumulative episode-specific evaluations
influenced trail users’ overall satisfaction (see Table 5). Those respondents who were more
content were also significantly more satisfied with their overall trail use experience than
those who perceived more conflict (means were 4.23 and 3.81, respectively, F = 10.05,
p < .002)). Based on these results, hypothesis 2 was supported.
Discussion and Conclusion
Many researchers have investigated leisure experience as a process that includes social interactions (Mannell & Iso-Ahola, 1987; Mannell & Kleiber, 1997; Stewart, 1998; Stewart
& Hull, 1992). Based on this tradition, the purpose of this study was to investigate how
TABLE 5 ANOVA of Mean Differences in Overall Satisfaction Between Contentment
Group and Conflict Group
Group
Contentment
Conflict
Total
a
n
Mean
F Ratio
F Prob.
85
23
108a
4.23
3.81
4.14
10.05
.002 ∗∗
Three respondents did not respond to the dependent variable.
Statistically significant at α = .01.
∗∗
Relationships Among Leisure Experience Constructs
105
emotions might relate to interactions between an individual and the environment in social
situations and to examine the relationships between emotions and episode-specific evaluations and between episode-specific evaluations and overall satisfaction. To accomplish the
study purpose, a research model was designed and tested. A linkage was expected among
components of a leisure experience and an increased understanding about the structure of
the experience was anticipated.
Findings supported the research model as designed with a conceptual linkage among
situated self-identity, emotion, episode-specific evaluation, and overall satisfaction with
an experience. Multi-use trail users related an average of 3.8 episodes, and each episode
had the power to change (confirm/disconfirm) affective meanings associated with selfidentities in that situation, resulting in positive or negative emotions. The nature of these
emotions was closely related to evaluations of the relevant episodes. After experiencing
positive emotions, trail users tended to positively evaluate (i.e., be more contented with)
the episodes that elicited such emotions. On the other hand, after experiencing negative
emotions, they tended to react negatively to the episodes that produced those emotions. Trail
users who were more contented across episode-specific evaluations reported higher levels
of satisfaction with the overall trail experience than those who had perceived more conflicts.
The linkage suggested in this study shared commonalties with the traditional leisure/
recreation research while also exhibiting differences. The first commonality is that, like
leisure satisfaction literature, this study started from the so-called confirmation/
disconfirmation paradigm. This study, however, is distinguishable from other studies conducted in this paradigm in two aspects. One is related to the object of confirmation/
disconfirmation. The leisure satisfaction literature based on the confirmation/
disconfirmation paradigm generally suggests that expectations related to leisure attributes
or psychological/social goals are the object of interest (Adelman, Heberlein, & Bonnicksen,
1982; Ditton et al., 1981; Jackson & Wong, 1982; Jacob & Schreyer, 1980; Lounsbury &
Hoopes, 1985; Vaske et al., 1980). In this study, the object of interest was fundamental
sentiments associated with self-identity because our social interactions are largely based on
how we see ourselves in a given situation.
The other difference from past research is related to the end results of confirmation/disconfirmation. In general, confirmation/disconfirmation is suggested as determining
leisure participants’ satisfaction levels (or perceived conflict levels) directly (Adelman et al.,
1982; Ditton et al., 1980; Jackson & Wong, 1982; Jacob & Schreyer, 1980; Lounsbury &
Hoopes, 1985; Vaske et al., 1980). However, this study suggested an indirect relationship between confirmation/disconfirmation and satisfaction as conveyed in ACT (Averett &
Heise, 1987; Heise, 1979; MacKinnon, 1994; Smith-Lovin, 1990). ACT suggests that confirmation/disconfirmation of affective meanings associated with people’s self-identities leads
them to experience emotions. Blahna et al. (1995) further stated that leisure participants’
conflict perceptions were attributable to frustration and discontentment arising from goal
deprivation.
The second commonality lies in considering the importance of emotions in terms of
leisure satisfaction. Generally researchers (Ajzen & Driver, 1992; Floyd, 1997; Westbrook,
1987) focused on emotions’ direct role in leisure satisfaction and reported a consistent
relationship: positive (or negative) emotions and a higher (or lower) level of satisfaction.
However, this study suggests that emotions influenced evaluations of episodes that occurred
during leisure participation rather than overall leisure satisfaction and that evaluations of
episodes “add up” to influence overall leisure satisfaction. Some researchers (Dube &
Morgan, 1998; Mehrabian & Russell, 1974) have also suggested this relationship. For
example, Dube and Morgan suggested emotions as an intervening variable between social
or physical stimuli and various human behaviors. Hull (1991) argued that the emotions
106
B. K. Lee et al.
one experienced during the course of a site visit are related to short- and long-term leisure
satisfaction. Similarly, Stewart and Hull (1992) suggested that “because the [on-site leisure]
experience changes, one would expect appraisals of the quality of that experience to change
as one moves along a time-space continuum (p. 196).” In particular, Mehrabian and Russell
specified types of evaluations. They mentioned that approach behaviors of all kinds increase
as a person experiences positive emotions like pleasure; whereas an avoidance behavior
would result when a person experiences negative emotions.
Linking evaluations of episodes to overall leisure satisfaction supports other research
(Decker et al., 1980; Ditton et al., 1980; Herrick & McDonald, 1992; Lounsbury & Hoopes,
1985; Manning, 1986; Oliver, 1993; Yi, 1990) that found overall leisure satisfaction was a
function of several separate facets or sub-domains of a leisure experience. Previous studies
(Decker et al., 1980; Ditton et al., 1980; Graefe & Fedler, 1986; Herrick & McDonald,
1992; Whisman & Hollenhorst, 1998) investigated the role of situational (e.g., the presence
of litter, biting insects, too many other people) and/or subjective factors (e.g., perceptions
of crowding, perceptions of resource impacts) in overall leisure satisfaction. However, this
study suggested that the evaluations of episodes including situational and/or subjective factors determined overall leisure satisfaction rather than situational and/or subjective factors
themselves.
In conclusion, leisure participants have several expectations or goals when they participate in a leisure activity. Maintaining affective meanings associated with their self-identities
(i.e., fundamental sentiments) is one of the expectations or goals. However the expectation
may be confirmed at one time during leisure participation, but disconfirmed at a different
time depending on episodes (i.e., social interactions between a leisure participant and others). The confirmation/disconfirmation of affective meanings associated with self-identity
produces outcomes (i.e., emotions), and, in turn, lead to evaluations on episodes. Evaluations
made of episodes determine leisure participants’ satisfaction levels.
In general, previous studies in leisure and recreation have focused only on the relationship between two concepts (e.g., between confirmation/ disconfirmation and satisfaction or
between emotions and satisfaction, or between satisfaction with sub-domains of leisure experience and overall satisfaction, etc.) in spite of implicit linkages among several concepts.
This study was intended to integrate multiple concepts to better understand the leisure experience. The research model proposed and empirically supported in this study enhances our
understanding of leisure experience and indicates that interactions during the experience
have a cumulative affect on leisure participants’ overall satisfaction.
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