Lecture 1 Social Psychology of Leisure

1. Lecture 1Social Psychology of Leisure

2. What are Social Sciences? • Versus physical sciences • Chemistry, biology, physics… • Physical science products: medicine, plastic, trees… • What are social science products? • Therapy, political polling, education programs…

3. Social Science is “People Watching” • Is this true? • Yes • Rigorous methods for observation • John’s interviews in the Adirondacks • Barb in Africa • Wall of doors with one open example • People will go out of their way to be lazy and go to the open door • People fixing hair in glass doors when entering building • Seinfeld is a show based on observation of human behavior

4. Social Science is: • Systematically observing people • At work, home, play… • Point is to understand human behavior • Are you a social scientist? • Yes • Do you gossip? • http://www.ratemyprofessor.com/SelectTeacher.jsp?sid=973 • Speculate about what will happen or what somebody will do next?

5. Why is Leisure important? • Major component of you life • Associated with family and work • 1/3 of our time • Associated with personal Happiness • “All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy” • Lifestyle choices • Pattern of living • What we do and how we do it • Family reunion, activity choices, mixing work and play… • Generational differences

6. Saving the world with social science • Yes I am! • How? Indirect impact on what people think and how they behave • First aid: PROP • Position of comfort • Reassurance (social support) • Oxygen • Positive pressure ventilation • Social science helps keep people alive (reassurance) • Must be used in combination with other sciences/methods

7. Why study leisure? • We are curious • Why do people walk, rock climb, sing, backpack? • Leisure allows a person to express the self • Work, family…can be constraining • If the goal is to understand the person’s feelings, attitudes, beliefs, personality • When is it best to observe them? Leisure or constrained activity? • Leisure is big business • Leisure fosters community • Leisure makes healthier-happier people • http://www.pbs.org/americaswalking/ • http://www.bikewalk.org/ • http://www.walktoschool-usa.org/

8. Why is this class important to managers? • Goals of recreation management • (from 372) • Provide a Quality Experience • Match visitor expectations with the opportunity provided

9. Why is this class important to managers? • Social experience and Psychology is an important component of marketing • America’s Family Resort • http://www.smuggs.com/flash/index.html • The Magic Kingdom • http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/wdw/parks/parkLanding?id=MKLandingPage&bhcp=1 • Big Sky Country • http://www.bigskyresort.com/ • Each creates an image of the recreation experience • http://timefortuckerman.com/

10. Leisure Management Success • Success is based on structuring the leisure environment to create predictably satisfying experiences • E.g. Destiny Mall • Why build a mall in Syracuse (why not out doors) • KOA campground to wilderness area • Social Science helps scientific planning, design principles • Provides tools for practitioners engaged in public service

11. What should you do with this knowledge? Integrate these three People: Individual Group Cultural Resources: Equipment Natural Facilities Provision & management level Personal level Quality of life Quality of experience Policy: Laws Regulations Rules

12. Issues Confusing Leisure Space • Trying to understand leisure space over time is difficult because it is influenced by other life factors over time • Changing work place • Changing job opportunities • Raft guide • Seeking jobs that are fun • Technology • Family structure • Single parents, dual career families • Age: • Home owner, “been there done that”, injuries with age…

13. Research Emphases in Leisure • AKA who uses this and what you are part of • Leisure Sciences • Explain peoples’ behavior and cognition (largely academic) • http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals/titles/01490400.asp • Community Leisure Services • Explain activity choices and involvement • Support communities, family youth programs • http://www.city.saskatoon.sk.ca/org/leisure/index.asp • http://www.syracuse.ny.us/parks/index.html • Commercial Recreation • Explain clients’ interest, preferences, needs, satisfaction • http://www.dreamride.com/custom.html • Therapeutic Recreation • Interventions • http://www.recreationtherapy.com/main.htm • http://www.recreationtherapy.com/cgi-bin/jobs/class_job.pl?action=View&cata=All&catb=All&catc=All&disp=No&display=15&begin=1&end=15 • Outdoor recreation • Explain relationships between Activities, Resource Setting, and Management Actions • http://www.fs.fed.us/r9/white/ • http://www.recreation.gov/

14. Levels of Analysis • Psychology • Social psychology • Sociology • Anthropology • Onion Diagram

15. What is the Scientific Method? • A way of making observations and/or gathering information to create an accurate representation of the world • Must address answerable questions • How many snow flakes are in the sky right now? • Different Social Science Methods • Observation and record occurrences • Survey • Manipulate field conditions or lab conditions

16. Scientific Method has Four Steps • Observation and description of a phenomenon or group of phenomena. • Formulation of an hypothesis to explain the phenomena. • Use of the hypothesis to predict the existence of other phenomena, or to predict quantitatively the results of new observations. • Performance of experimental tests of the predictions by several independent experimenters and properly performed experiments.

17. Theory • Set of interrelated, testable propositions • Proposition Examples: (conflict) • Conflict results when users with a possessive attitude towards the resource confront users perceived as disrupting traditional uses and behavioral norms • Conflict occurs for high status users when they must interact with the lower status users who symbolize a devaluation of a heretofore exclusive, intimate relationship with the place

18. Goals of Theory • A method for organizing things (typology) • Predicting future events • Explaining past events • Understanding what causes events • The potential to control events • Leisure research “borrows” theory from many disciplines • Theory must be testable • Theories are ABSTRACT

19. Predicting and Explaining • Essentially the same thing depending on level of abstractness (except for temporal context) • Under certain conditions, a change in one variable, is followed by a change in another • If the rate of riders joining a mountain bike club is constant, [conditions] • then an increase in club size, [variable 1] • will be followed by an increase in formal structure of the club [variable 2]

20. Understanding • An increase in mountain bike club size is considered to be an increase in the number of club members • An increase in members will cause an increase in the variation of the riding skill and experience of the members • As the members vary more in terms of their skill and experience their interpretation of club rules and riding needs will vary more • An increase in interpretation of club rules and riding needs will cause a decrease of coordination and success of club activities • A decrease in coordination of club activities causes a decrease in club performance and member satisfaction • A decrease in performance disturbs club administrators • Administrators attribute poor performance to a decrease in coordination • Administrators attribute decrease in coordination to ambiguous rules and poorly planned activities not targeting member needs • To reduce ambiguity, administrators increase number and specificity of rules and provide a larger variety of activities targeted at different skill levels • An increase in the number of rules and variety of activity options is considered an indicator of an increase in club formalization

21. Control • Control is not an “absolute” criteria for theory • EG: Astronomy, geology, social science • Understand planets and stars, but control? • Understand earthquakes, but control? • Understand the economic system, but can Alan Greenspan control it? • Understand hiker satisfaction, but control it? • We hope to influence it as best we can

22. Hypotheses • Statement selected for comparison against data collected in a concrete situation • Source of hypotheses • Derived from propositions • Generated by scientist’s intuition (hunch) • All concepts in a hypothesis must be measurable in concrete situations

23. Three Components of the Scientific Method • Empiricism: • Way of knowing/understanding the world that relies on what we can see and experience directly and indirectly through our senses (sight, hearing, taste, touch, smell) • Objectivity: • Observation that is free from bias (yea right!) • Control: • Use procedures that eliminate sources of bias & error that distort results

24. How do we find an answer? • AKA, the difference between social science and gossip • Descriptive information • What is happening? • Cause-and-effect relationship • between events • Underlying linking mechanism • E.g. ice cream sales and drowning (coincidence?)

25. Swarms of Climbers Take Toll • Descriptive information • Users: Bus of NYC climbers, camps, church groups, college clubs, top-roping, how often? • Impacts: Litter, crowding, damaging vegetation, safety, Palin and Mellor are upset • Is there a problem? If so, is there really a problem? • Have incidents of these impacts increased since these groups started using the areas? • Cause-and-effect relationship • Are group use and impacts related? • How would you determine this? If there is evidence of a link then…

26. Swarms of Climbers Take Toll 3. Determine underlying linking mechanism • What are the physical, social, and psychological explanations for the link between group use and impacts? • Help determine how to deal with the problem? • Larger groups cause larger and faster impact (than smaller groups) • DEC response? • Limit group size to 8 • What will this address? • resource impacts, safety, crowding? • Is it an appropriate response? • Other cause and effect relationships resulting in problem?

27. Swarms of Climbers Take Toll • There is no evidence in the article indicating that there is a causal relationship between group use and resource impacts or safety • If you follow the article logic • You would expect a large number of areas in the ADK to be at risk • Even the article targets a single area • Is it likely that the whole ADK is at risk? • Does the presence of groups at one area merit the mobilization of the DEC?

28. swarms • Other cause and effect relationships resulting in problem? • Palin and Mellor might think the group use and top-roping an is inappropriate activity style • Is the real problem conflict of values? • What if people just enjoy the ADK and climbing is just an excuse to be in the area? • Limiting climbing use might result in displacing people to other area and activity resulting in same problem in different location • In this case climbing is just a symptom of the problem • Does this problem merit social psychological approach?

29. swarms • What would you look at? • Aspects of the specific location that contribute to impacts or attracting groups • Aspects of the social environment that contribute to attracting unsafe climbers or crowding • Why might some areas be more susceptible that others? • What are alternative solutions?

30. Go to hand written notes

31. Approaches to Explaining Behavior Situationism (stimulus-Response Approach) • Bf(E) Behavior is a function of environment • Attitudes, thoughts, feelings…cannot be seen and are not worth studying or using to explain behavior • Stimuli triggers behavior • Reward for behavior will cause subject to continue behavior • Littering and using vegetation are behaviors supported by peers • Unsafe behaviors may be supported by peers

32. Approaches to Explaining Behavior The Person (organism-Response Approach) • Bf(P) Behavior is a function of the person • People have stable and enduring differences • Needs, motives, attitudes, personalities • These are independent of the situation • Personal dispositions are learned, inherited, combination • People act consistently across situations • Personality tests to identify traits • What might influence action in ADK climbing groups? • Some climbers might be sensation seekers and climb unsafely • Might seek social interaction/affiliation and group activities • Littering may represent breaking rules

33. Situation & Person (stimulus-organism approach) • Bf(P,E) • Behavior is a function of the person and the environment • Combines both approaches • Interaction among stimulus, situation, and organism • Person constructs situation, attaches meaning to situation, cannot separate the two • Key to understanding ADK climbing groups • Developing an idea of how they think and feel [person factors] about the climbing area, the activity, ADK [situation factors]

34. Bf(P,E) • Understand the “context” in which behavior takes place and stable personality dispositions • Group situation may explain impacts • Littering and using vegetation are behaviors supported by peers • group may not have knowledge of safe behaviors and reinforce unsafe behaviors • Personality trait explains safety and crowding • Sensation seeking leads to unsafe behavior • Need for affiliation results in group activities

35. Bf(P,E) • “Additive model” used to address entire problem • All variables must interact to produce the outcome • Each variable has an individual influence, but not enough independently to produce problems

36. Bf(P,E) • Personality operates twice (selection & guidance • People choose situations (self selection) • If not constrained people will choose situations that are compatible with their personality • What would you choose? How would act? • Situation may overpower personality • Low sensation seekers may be unsafe because of friends/group pressure • Low sensation seekers may avoid climbing all together when not with friends • How many spouses do activities that they do not want to?

37. Down and Dirty Definition of Social Psychology • How the individual relates to the group and how the group influences the individual • Two Components • Internal psychological dispositions • Perceptions, feelings, emotions, beliefs, attitudes, needs, personality • Situational Influences • Part of the social environment • Other people, group norms, human artifacts, media