Socialization Toward Leisure: A Developmental ApproachKelly, John R.
doi: 10.1080/00222216.1974.11970184pmid: N/A
Exploration of how the leisure socialization process can be investigated requires answers to basic questions of when and with whom leisure is learned. From interviews of adults in a Western community, profiles of the social context and meaning of a wide range of leisure activities have been developed. Activities were found to have been evenly divided among those begun as children and in adult years. Family associations were primary in learning 63 percent. Activities were classified by form and social orientation and then related to periods in the family life cycle. The findings suggest that leisure socialization is a lifelong process. Research implications are outlined that would fill in the picture of a developmental approach to leisure careers.1
A Comparison of the Sentiments and Perceptions of Wilderness Managers and Canoeists in the Boundary Waters Canoe AreaPeterson, George L.
doi: 10.1080/00222216.1974.11970185pmid: N/A
Wilderness managers and summer canoeists were studied in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area (BWCA) to determine whether the two groups differ in their wilderness motivations, attitudes, preferences and perceptions. Psychological inventories were used to study the detailed spectrum of the “wilderness experience.” Environmental disposition, a more basic aspect of personality, was studied, using McKechnie's Environmental Response Inventory. There were strong tendencies toward agreement, especially for environmental disposition, which showed that the managers are even more pastoral and less urban than the canoeists. However, regarding details of the human response to the BWCA, there are important differences in degree. The managers are less negatively disposed toward many things that the canoeists find undesirable. The managers seem to have more varied motivations and apparently are more knowledgeable about the BWCA. The canoeists have an inflated image of the wilderness character of the area, relative to the managers, but apparently are more demanding in their expectations and use different criteria to evaluate recreational performance. The managers tend to rate performance higher than the canoeists do in spite of their less pristine view of the BWCA's wilderness quality.Regarding their preferences for wilderness activities, the managers seem to be more cautious and realistic and less fanciful or romantic than the canoeists. They also seem more interested in appreciation of the historical heritage of the area. Paradoxically, the canoeists have a more “purist” attitude than the managers toward natural features and competing uses, but the managers have a more “purist” attitude toward many convenience facilities. These and other differences that are reported and discussed suggest that management services will be less than optimal if the manager's decisions reflect his own attitudes and perceptions.
Work Orientation, Meaning of Leisure and Mental HealthSpreitzer, Elmer A.; Snyder, Eldon E.
doi: 10.1080/00222216.1974.11970186pmid: N/A
This paper is focused on the subjective meanings attached to leisure activities. The interest, then, is on the affective or attitudinal level rather than overt leisure behavior forms. This paper's main objective is to explore the relationship between work orientation and attitudes toward leisure activities, particularly with respect to any compensatory function that leisure might serve in the situation of a person holding a job that does not permit self-expression. Consideration is also given to work and leisure orientation as related to psychological well-being.
Distance and the ‘Reaction’ to Distance as a Function of DistanceBeaman, Jay
doi: 10.1080/00222216.1974.11970187pmid: N/A
“Distance and the ‘Reaction’ to Distance as a Function of Distance” is a phrase designed to emphasize the need for more analysis of the behavioral significance of gravity functions. This paper, in pursuing the behavioral significance theme, concentrates on research related to the “inertia models” suggested by Wolfe. Actually, alternative approaches to understanding the significance of gravity functions used in modeling travel behavior are introduced. However, the particular alternative pursued in depth is the methodology endorsed for understanding travel decisions in marginal terms.The most important concept presented is that if an inertia model of travel behavior of the type Wolfe describes is accepted, the decision to visit a given location must involve a reaction to distance in marginal rather than absolute terms. To quantify concepts, the paper focuses on the effect of going one more unit of distance beyond a given point. This quantification being carried out leads to the conclusion that analysis of reaction to distance in marginal terms should be based on the properties of an “impedance due to distance function” IDF (d), which may be derived from the distance part of a gravity function g(x) by: In the paper, a discussion of five gravity functions provides a basis for illustrating points and methods introduced. IDF(d)'s are derived for the functions considered. As well, conjectures on the response to distance suggested by the functions are checked by reference to the impedance of distance functions derived for the gravity functions introduced.Important conclusions relate to the fact that it is very easy to misinterpret the significance of gravity functions as to how they imply decisions are made if one only looks at the shape of such functions. Actually, it is shown that in cases where one may think each new mile to be traveled offers more resistance than the last, each new mile offers less resistance or constant resistance. One of the cases presented, in fact, involves impedance which decreases and then increases to approach infinity.1
Spurious Correlation in Estimating Recreation Demand FunctionsMcCuen, Richard H.
doi: 10.1080/00222216.1974.11970188pmid: N/A
Correlation and regression analyses are used extensively in recreational analysis. The correlation coefficient is frequently used as an indication of the validity of a linear relationship between variables.Recreation demand functions are often derived using empirical prediction equations that relate visitation per capita to either variables representing the supply of recreation facilities or variables expressing the cost of travel. But analyses involving ratios of variables, such as visitation per capita or water acreage per capita, should not be extrapolated to inferences concerning the individual variables, such as visitation.A correlation coefficient derived using ratios of variables may not indicate the ability of predictor variables to explain variation in a component variable of the ratio. In fact, such correlation may be spuriously high or low and inferences about the individual variables highly misleading. The concept of ratio correlation is discussed and examples presented to demonstrate potential ambiguity in recreational analysis.1
An Example of a Gravity Model to Estimate Recreation TravelFreund, R. J.; Wilson, R. R.
doi: 10.1080/00222216.1974.11970189pmid: N/A
An extensive data base provided for the Texas Outdoor Recreation Plan (Texas, 1974) has provided an opportunity to implement the estimation of a gravity model to explain recreational travel and participation in Texas. This paper concentrates on implementation methodology and the nature of results obtained from this study.It was found that a major task in this implementation was to make physically observed measurements serve as proxies for parameters specified by the gravity model. Another major task lay in choosing a reasonable set of meaningful predictor variables.With some exceptions, model parameter estimates agreed with expectations. Recreation travel and participation estimates showed some rather large discrepancies with observed travel but appeared to be of adequate quality to be used for policy and planning purposes, particularly when used in conjunction with other estimates.