Paul Weeks

Drivers of Change in Tourism, Hospitality, and Event Management Education: An Australian Perspective

In an increasingly pressured academic environment, too little time is given to understanding the factors that shape tourism, hospitality, and event management education curricula. In responding to this rapidly changing environment there is a risk that one can become reactive rather than strategic and forward thinking. This article identifies major political, philosophical, and managerial influences on the Australian curriculum space. The implications of these influences are discussed with reference to developments in other parts of the world. The conclusion highlights a number of changes and challenges that will need to be contemplated by tourism, hospitality, and event management education management educators but also identifies a clear role for cross-institutional planning and leadership.

Presenting phenomenology: faithfully recreating the lived experiences of Surfer Girls

Phenomenology offers an appropriate philosophical orientation to investigate peoples lived experiences. It is an approach that is now widely acknowledged and applied in the social sciences. Despite its increasing adaptation in diverse contexts, the use of phenomenology in leisure studies remains limited and presents many conceptual, theoretical and applied challenges to researchers. A significant challenge is presenting research findings in ways that faithfully present peoples experiences. This paper provides reflexive insights into Lauras (the lead authors) attempts as a current Ph.D. candidate to embrace Heideggerian phenomenology to investigate the experiences of being a surfer. The paper is derived from Lauras thesis process, where she took part in 37 unstructured conversations with women surfers (‘Surfer Girls’), and incorporated her own experiences as a woman surfer into the study. In her thesis, Laura presents her findings in the form of ‘postcards’ to promote women surfers individuality, and to make their words come to life. Text, visual and other aids are incorporated in ways that enrich the written word, and that set a ‘surfing scene’ and create a surfing life-world for the reader. This paper examines and explains the importance of integrating phenomenological method and analysis to give faithful voice to peoples lived experiences, and suggests tools for presenting phenomenological findings. Finally, this paper justifies and promotes the use of phenomenology as an under-utilized means of deepening our understandings of peoples leisure experiences.

Online gambling and crime: causes, controls and controversies

This book is suitable for both academics and practitioners. While this text is not appropriate as an introduction to leisure studies, it would be intriguing to use it as a central resource for a special topics upper-division undergraduate or graduate class. With the possible exception of the chapter subtitled, The Science and Artistry of Coenesthetic Connection, most chapters would be approachable for undergraduate students. Graduate students may benefit from the many examples of theory application, such as canine sports as serious leisure. Domestic Animals and Leisure offers a solid contribution to the analysis of non-human animals and leisure; however, it does more than just review topics associated with recreation and animals. This text provides an opportunity for us to better understand what role leisure should play in the multispecies world we live in.