Lisbeth Lindström

The Case of Open Leisure Activities organized in Swedish Local Councils : The Role of Citizenship and Entrepreneurship Skills development

In this article, we contribute to theory by integrating literature on citizenship and entrepreneurship, based on which we develop a framework for how personal development is achieved for young people in the context of open leisure activities. The empirical material in this study consists of survey data collected in Swedish open leisure centers. A questionnaire was distributed to 265 publicly funded leisure centers all over Sweden. The material was analyzed in an exploratory study involving factor analysis using hierarchical regression in four steps. When reviewing the results, it is clear that citizenship and entrepreneurship both contribute to personal development at open leisure centers in Sweden. To conclude, this exploratory study provides evidence that concepts from citizenship and entrepreneurship theory can help in understanding the personal development of young people in publicly run leisure settings.

Youth, Participation, Leisure and Citizenship

The purpose with this article is to describe, explore, and discuss texts that ten Swedish local councils present on their homepages from the perspective of leisure, influence and citizenship for youths. Content analysis is used as a method in order to understand the content and structure of texts such as political aims, strategical plans and budgets. The result of the empirical study shows that the picture of youth citizenship is neither uniform nor coherent, but rather complicated and contradictory. On the one hand, the image of young people is that they are presented as individuals who are creative, interested in and willing to take responsibility for matters which concern them. The image of youth is that they need to practice democracy in particular established structures. Young people are seen as individuals who need places to hang around, meet with their friends and have free access to activities such as listening to music, playing games or using the Internet. On the other hand the idea that the young generation needs protection and tutoring, to be watched over, controlled and sometimes guarded by social authorities is also expressed in the texts.

Leisure, Government and Governance: A Swedish Perspective

The leisure sector has witnessed a tremendous expansion since 1960. The purpose of this article is to analyse the decisions and goals of Swedish government policy during the period 1962 to 2005. The empirical analysis covers government Propositions and governmental investigations. The fields covered are sports, culture, exercise, tourism and recreation. The article concludes that during the last ten years the private sector, led by companies, economic associations and foundations, has expanded its involvement in the leisure sector. Whereas the state used to control all parts of the leisure value chain, it is now possible to distinguish between those who produce, arrange and finance leisure services.

Leisure and tourism in Sweden: a challenge for all actors.

Abstract This paper describes and analyses decisions and goals of Swedish government policy with respect to leisure and free time from 1962 to 2005. This paper clarifies the areas and needs that have been considered important priorities, which principles for the organisation of the leisure field the authorities have followed, and the actors who have been made responsible. The method used is an analysis of papers issued by the government relating to sports, culture, exercise, tourism, and also health care. This paper highlights still ongoing changes that have been occurring in the Swedish leisure sector since the 1960s. Based on current trends, it is likely that there will be less traditional political influence over the leisure and tourism sector in the future. A political aim for Sweden in the future is that it should be a highly attractive tourist destination. It is argued that to achieve this aim it will be necessary to aggregate official resources with those of different levels of government, and with the capabilities of the commercial and voluntary sectors.