John R. Kelly

Later‐life satisfaction: Does leisure contribute?

Abstract “Activity theories”; of aging as well as the common wisdom in recreation presume that greater activity leads to greater satisfaction with life in later years. Research, however, has produced conflicting results. Review and meta‐analysis of previous research on the contribution of leisure and social activity to subjective well‐being has produced a sequence of questions: (1) Do frequency and breadth of participation in leisure activity contribute to later‐life satisfaction? (2) Do some types of activity contribute more than others? (3) Do the types of activity that contribute most to subjective well‐being differ with age? Results of a telephone survey of 400 adults age 40 and above demonstrate the independent contribution of leisure to life satisfaction. Social activity and travel are associated with higher levels of life satisfaction for those age 65–74 and family and home‐based activity for those age 75 and over. Both the “core”; model of leisure and the tendency toward constriction of activity c...

Multiple Dimensions of Meaning in the Domains of Work, Family, and Leisure

The field of leisure studies has a considerable investment in the idea that leisure is fundamentally different from the rest of life. The legitimacy of research and theory on leisure has often been presumed to require such a clear distinction. The fact that many, perhaps most, languages do not even have a word equivalent to leisure is bypassed in a concentration on the supposed Greek roots of the concept (Goodale & Godbey, 1988).What if leisure isnt so special after all? What if all or most of the meanings that people find in leisure are also found in other domains of life? Even in traditional leisure studies, the issue has become somewhat muddied. For example, conceptualizing leisure as time or free time is recognized as more complex than once assumed, i.e., deciding how free the time must be. It is also evident that discretion, spontaneity, creativity, and involvement, said to characterize leisure, may be found in work as well. Further, the constraints of role expectations, resource limits, and personal inhibitions are found in leisure settings. Even though the concept of freedom has been central to philosophical approaches to leisure since Aristotle (Goodale & Godbey, 1988; Kelly, 1992), few would argue that leisure is wholly free of obligation or work totally without discretion. In fact, self-determination is the key factor in work satisfaction (Kohn, 1990).From a psychological perspective, leisure has been defined as perceived freedom, intrinsic motivation, and noninstrumentality (Neulinger, 1974). Again, however, such perceptions would seem to be possible in almost any realm of activity. Conversely, seldom if ever is any activity completely devoid of some sense of limitation and of meaning beyond the immediate experience. As a consequence, it is possible to argue that leisure is moredimension or quality of action than a separate domain (Kelly, 1987a, 1992). Leisure is related to work, family, education, personal development, sexuality, and almost everything else rather than being a clearly distinct aspect of life.Making the boundaries more fuzzy than clearcut is also consistent with three current developments in leisure studies. The first is attention to womens perspectives on leisure and the need to reformulate some traditional male-oriented models (Henderson, Bialeschki, Shaw, & Freysinger, 1989). Womens leisure is now seen as more connected to and even embedded in role relationships than that of men (Kelly & Godbey, 1992). The second development is the critique of the common work-leisure dichotomy (Parker, 1971) in favor of approaches that view the two as more overlapping than totally separate in time, space, and meaning (Zuzanek & Mannell, 1983). The third development is the attention given to Csikszentmihalyis concept of flow with its focus on involvement, challenge, and intrinsic or autotelic meaning. His experience sampling studies have found flow more often in work than in leisure settings (Csikszentmihalyi, 1990).At least the question is raised about the distinctiveness of leisure. Is it a domain or a dimension? Is it quite different from other aspects of life or related to them in multiple ways that are yet to be sorted out? Is there a universal meaning of leisure or does it vary by gender, philosophical and religious premises, culture, and historical epoch? Has the desire to identify something special in order to legitimate the entire leisure studies project led to an overemphasis on its uniqueness?The first section of this paper will offer a reformulation of issues related to dividing human life in society into three separate domains with work considered central. An alternative perspective of multiple intersecting roles is presented that avoids either/or formulations and proposes that the domains of work, family, and leisure may be multi-dimensional. Six research questions are derived from this analysis that form the basis of an exploratory study of the dimensions of meaning in each of the domains of work, immediate community/family, and leisure activity. …

Outdoor recreation participation: A comparative analysis

The relationship of demographic variables to participation in outdoor recreation has been studied with both practical and theoretical aims. However, the results of demographic analysis have been disappointing in their failure to verify an adequate model of prediction for population aggregates. The 1977 Outdoor Recreation Telephone Survey is analyzed with stepwise multiple regression, an associational matrix, and contingency tables. While variance accounted for ranges only from 1 to 10 percent in multiple regression analysis, the relationship of specific activities to age, sex, and other variables is found to be both useful and of substantive interest. Implications for theory and practice are outlined.

A revised paradigm of leisure choices

A theory‐based model distinguishing three kinds of leisure from required nonwork activity has been examined through research on adult leisure in three communities. In the research sequence, the defining dimension of relative freedom and constraint is found central to the perceptions of respondents, but the work‐relation dimension does not significantly differentiate types of leisure. The model is revised to replace work‐relation with meaning to the participant that is either intrinsic to doing the activity or primarily social. Further, anticipated satisfactions in building and maintaining relationships are found more salient in leisure choices than in meeting role expectations. The revised typology is employed to classify activities from the New Town phase of the research as (1) unconditional, (2) recuperative, (3) relational, and (4) role‐determined.

Social integration, leisure activity, and life satisfaction in older adults: activity theory revisited.

The relative contributions of objective integration, subjective integration, and total leisure activity to the life satisfaction of older adults are examined. A random sample of 400 persons ages forty through eighty-nine residing in a demographically typical midwestern city were interviewed by phone. Results show that Objective Integration does not contribute incrementally to Life Satisfaction except among males under age sixty-five. Subjective Integration, on the other hand, contributes significantly to Life Satisfaction of males and females under and over age sixty-five. Even when demographic variables, Objective Integration, and Subjective Integration are taken into account statistically, Total Leisure Activity contributes significantly to Life Satisfaction in all groups examined.

Situational and Social Factors in Leisure Decisions

All definitions of leisure include the central element of freedom of choice (Dumazedier, 1967; Kelly, 1972; Neulinger, 1974). However, social research has persistently attempted to identify factors that shape those choices. Social psychologists have concentrated on elements of the personality, personal valuesystems, and self-perceptions (Neulinger, 1974). This approach had been given impetus by a sociologist who found such personality factors more determinative than social factors (Havighurst, 1957). Sociologists, on the other hand, have focused on influences external to the person making the choices. The most common approach has been to examine the degree to which demographic and social position variables have determined leisure choices. A

Later‐life leisure: Beginning a new agenda

Abstract Two issues have dominated research on leisure activity and aging in the past two decades: (1) What is the relationship of aging to participation in nonwork activities? and (2) What is the relationship of such participation to satisfaction in later life? A general consensus has developed that supports a nonlinear reduction in activity engagement in later years and a significant correlation between activity participation and life satisfaction. Further questions are proposed that provide the basis for continued research on leisure as an index of resources, the types of activity that contribute most to satisfaction, motivational orientations, and leisure as a context for the development of personal and social identities. A mailed survey was conducted of 380 adults in a Midwest city. The kinds of activities that make an independent contribution to later life were found to differ from one adult life period to another and are a context for the expression of leisure‐based identities. Further agendas for ...

Leisure styles: A hidden core

Abstract Factor analysis has been employed in a number of North American and European studies to categorize leisure activities according to participation patterns. The resulting factors have been the basis of proposed labels for leisure styles. Since the results of the factor analyses have been found to vary with the relative heterogeneity of samples and activities studied, comparison of previous findings with a more varied sample and activity list is indicated. With an NORC national sample and participation measured in a diverse list of leisure activities, factor analysis was completed and stepwise multiple regression used to measure the relationship of the resulting factors to age, sex, and social position indices. The factors do not support a neat or clearly differentiated set of activity groupings. Further, a set of activities with high participation rates did not appear in any factors or vary systematically by age, sex, or social position. Support is given to a model that suggests that adult leisure ...

Relationships Among Motivational Orientation, Level of Leisure Activity, and Life Satisfaction in Older Men and Women

With telephone and mailed questionnaire data from 217 persons between the ages of 40 and 89 years and residing in a midwestern city, the effects of selected aspects of motivation on levels of leisure activity and life satisfaction were investigated. Differences between employed and retired persons and between men and women were examined. Analysis of covariance, with a measure of problem perception serving as a covariate, was used to analyze the data. Results indicated that three motivational orientations--challenge seeking, concern with recognition and reward, and family focus--were systematically related to life satisfaction in the sample. The study provides an explanation for some of the inconsistencies in the literature on activity theory and strongly suggests that blanket prescriptions for increases in leisure activity are not necessarily desirable for all retired persons.

Leisure Styles and Choices in Three Environments

A lmost any kind of activity can be leisure if it is chosen rather than determined and is expected to yield some satisfaction to the participant (Dumazedier, 1967). Further, different kinds of activities may yield similar satisfactions either intrinsic to participation or in social relationships (Havighurst, 1957; Kelly, 1975). This research report compares the kinds of activities chosen by adults in three North American communities and the