rls223 2. social psychological approaches for leisure

how do social psychologists view the world?

through a constructionist view

constructionist view

people actively construct or make sense of the situation that they find themselves in. This shapes their behaviours, perceptions, and experiences (i.e., is subjective)

hypothetical construct

something that is thought to exist but cannot be directly observed, so it must be inferred based on what people say and do.

• we believe it but we cannot actually observe it i.e., motivation, desire, sense of community, love

• we observe it based on something else

operational definition

how hypothetical constructs are defined in terms of how the construct is being measured (i.e., the way hypothetical constructs are actually measured.)

empirical definition

Based on data, observations, and information gathered through various methods. using controlled, systematic data to make conclusions; something based on evidence / data, not just anecdotal / your opinion!

independent variables

variables that researchers manipulate or change to see if it has an effect on participant’s behaviours or thoughts. They themselves are not effected by another variable, but rather doing the effecting.

• They are not always present in research; they exist in experimental studies but not in non-experimental studies.

dependent variables

Variables that the researcher measures or observes.

• There is always at least one dependent variable in research as you are always trying to measure something.

non-experimental research designs

• No effort is made to influence the conditions under which the people being studied respond. you are literally just watching

• Focus is on observing existing relationships and patterns (i.e., the dependent variable) without determining cause and effect.

• There is not an independent variable.

experimental research designs

• The researcher may assign study participants to multiple groups.

• One group receives a treatment, which involves manipulating the independent variable to see if there is an impact on the dependent variable (i.e., to see if the treatment caused a difference).

• Focus is on determining cause and effect, which is possible because of the researcher manipulation.

true or false: the experimental approach is better than the non-experimental approach

false (they’re equal!)

true or false: there are research designs that are not exclusive to leisure

true

how do we define leisure?

with both objective and subjective approaches

true or false: who is defining leisure shouldn’t be considered

false

different ways of defining leisure can lead to…

different insights

objectively defining leisure

what people do.

• This approach to defining leisure measures the activities people participate in and the amount of time spent in these activities. It is focused on NUMBERS and CATEGORIES (aka DATA-based). This may include:

  • The number of specific activities someone participates in.

  • The general categories of activities.

  • The frequency of participation in activities.

  • The amount of time involved in activities.

  • The location of the activities.

• Typically measured by watching, observing, anddocumenting and recording leisure instances.

subjectively defining leisure

what people think and feel (i.e. experience)

• This approach to defining leisure means that researchers attempt to measure people’s mental experiences surrounding leisure activities. Focused on more EMOTION/FEELING and INTERPRETATION (aka OPINION-based). Cannot only be observed (we need to ask them!)This may include:

  • The meaning people take from the experience

  • Satisfaction and benefits from the experience

  • Emotions, moods, feelings, thoughts

  • Attitudes, beliefs, and values

• Typically measured by surveys and interviews

externally defining leisure

the RESEARCHER defines leisure

• the objective subjective definition of what leisure is and what constitutes leisure is driven by the researcher (the outside pov).

  • The researcher defines objective behaviours as leisure or non-leisure

  • The researcher defines subjective experiences as leisure or non-leisure.

• The researcher, not the individual or people being studied (i.e., participants), determines what is and is not leisure.

• External leisure defintions are often based on what a group agrees to be leisure.

• The researcher predetermines or imposed a definition of leisure.

internally defining leisure

the PARTICIPANT defines leisure

• The objective or subjective definition of what leisure is and what constitutes leisure is driven by the participant.

  • The participant defines objective behaviours as leisure or non-leisure.

  • The participant defines subjective experiences as leisure or non-leisure.

• The researcher leaves it up to the participants regarding what they personally perceive and believe to be considered leisure.

• Using people’s own definitions of leisure helps researchers better capture how much leisure participants feel they have participated in and how it may impact their lives.

why is vantage point (pov) important to consider?

there may be inconsistencies between how researchers and participants view and define leisure

• Participants’ definition may not always line up with what your definition of leisure is! so we need to be mindful about OUR definition and THEIRS

qualitative data

typically gathered through the use of open-ended approaches, often involving description and interpretation (e.g., open-ended interviews, personal accounts, audiovisual materials).

• think of asking questions like “what did you enjoy about that experience? what made you enjoy it?” — asking THEIR pov and based off of their story 

quantitative data

typically collected through the use measurable approaches, often involving numerical scores, counts, and ratings (e.g., questionnaires, quantifiable records, tracking data).

• getting numbers, categories, and data.

• e.g., what were their scores? how many did this? which places did they participate in leisure?

field experiments

• Research studies conducted in real-world leisure settings.

• Researchers may manipulate variables to examine effects on participant behaviours or experiences, but they do NOT have to.

• May be conducted in a range of recreation and leisure contexts (e.g., sports fields or courts, parks, trails, recreation centres, places of social gatherings); wherever recreation and leisure may occur.

• Although conducted in a real-world setting, the researcher can maintain a degree experimental control in manipulating independent variables

• field experiments are observing people and learning about them in real world leisure settings / their “natural habitat”

  • shows us how they actually behave and not how they THINK / WANT to act or be portrayed if they if they knew they were being watched

laboratory experiments

• Research studies conducted in a research lab or a setting simulated by the researcher.

• Relatively few studies effectively create leisure conditions in a laboratory.

• Although there is high control over variables, there is a lack of realism

thought experiments

• Involves presenting participants with hypothetical scenarios where they are asked to imagine how they would behave, feel, or act in the presented situations. “imagine this. what would you do if….”

• Researchers may give varying degrees of prompts and response options.

• Findings from thought experiments must be replicated in real-world settings that reflect the hypothetical situations.

• You have a LOT more flexibility (you can ask about different costs, weather, time, different factors without actually having to inflict those things)

  • You can change things that you normally couldn’t change (i.e., weather, costs of things, income levels, etc.)

• You might have people say they’ll respond this way when they really wouldn’t

• Would most likely be the first step in a lab or field experiment just to see how people would react before actually carrying out the experiment

naturalistic observation

• Involves the researcher observing or watching the participant in their real-world leisure setting.

• Typically focused on specific leisure activities rather than a full range of activities.

• Allows the researcher to observe, in real time, without a lot of influence on the participant.

• May record quantitative (e.g., durations, locations) or qualitative (e.g., photos, notes) information.

• Can provide rich detail about many aspects of the activity. Helps see the most accurate / honest results (no biased [“oh they’re watching me so i’ll act better” type behaviours] / false answers!)

• Not controlled at all

• Most always better in smaller environments

surveys

• Involve asking participants to respond to pre-determined questions, typically on rating scales (e.g., degree of agreement, frequency).

• Surveys are the most frequently used method in leisure research.

• Surveys are flexible and can include a range of measures and be delivered in a variety of ways (e.g., in-person, online).

• Can be used to measure the types of activities people in engage in, their intentions to participate, and how often they engage in different activities.

• Can be used to evaluate differences in psychological characteristics and preferences (e.g., tendencies, personality traits).

• Typically have fixed response options, but may have open-ended options.

• Often have large sample sizes.

• A type of field experiment

• Can be yes/no, multiple choice agree/disagree statements, range of 1-5 type questions, etc.

• Pros: usually validated, supported by research so the questions are probably very good and answers are quite accurate.

• Cons: people might not wanna do them, may lie, might take a long time to complete if it is long, surveys may get the “what” but NOT the “why”

interviews

• Interviews involve taking a conversational approach with participants to discuss participants’ perspectives regarding different leisure experiences.

• Can expand understanding of other methods.

• Often have smaller sample sizes as it takes longer and requires more personal conversations

• Aims to understand experiences from the perspective of the individual.

• Semi-structured in that there are pre-determined questions, but allows for. flexibility (e.g., follow-ups, spontaneous question) to explore participant responses.

  • A convo, structured (you lead with questions, formal) or not (the participant will kinda lead and you sit back more), where the participant responds —> VERY PARTICIPANT BASED AND SUBJECTIVE

  • Questions should be more specific than just “how do you feel” e.g., “how do you feel after this happened? are you more or less stressed?”

  • Is this an OPEN ENDED question or a STRUCTURED question? (i.e. can they answer how they want or is it a two option question)

• A type of field experiment

• May also occur AFTER an experiment/observation too!

• Pros: can get the “what” AND the “why” 

• Cons: ppl may cahnge thier responses depending on how they want to be perceived, might take a long time, might not be available to interview

experience sampling method

• Involves monitoring the psychological states and experiences that accompany leisure activity using notifications to prompt participant responses.

• A large portion of leisure is embedded within everyday activities (e.g., coffee breaks, activities within work or school).

• Participants receive notifications at various points throughout the day (e.g., via wearable technology, smart phone) asking them to complete surveys at or around that moment.

• Usually, participants are asked to record what they were doing (i.e., leisure activity), who they were with, as well as completing emotional and psychological scales.

• Make sure to define the definition of leisure in order to get the most wanted results (because everyone has different definitions of leisure!)

• Pros: allows to see them in their natural environment + what they feel / know at specific times of day without having to actually follow them around. Sees what parts they enjoy more than others, stress level, tired levels, etc., helps see how people progress through the day and how to adjust the program in order to accommodate for specific times of day

• Cons: participants NEED some sort of device, if the participant isn’t interested they will not participant, people might forget/push it to the side

time-use diaries

• Involve asking participants to record their leisure activities (e.g., via written log, with an app), like a journal

• This approach allows researchers to estimate the amount of time that participants dedicate toward different activities, such as leisure, during the day.

• Diaries may also include additional information beyond recording the type and time (e.g., who the activity was with, location).

• May lack deeper context and understanding, particularly if limited to quickly recording information.

• You hope someone records the activity as recent as possible but realistically will probably just have people recall the event a few days ago

  • If people are late, forget, or you ask someone to recall an event, it is not as realistic cause not everyone has a good memory —> do NOT use if you want the most up to date / accurate responses

• Primary goal is to see what you were doing at different times/how they allocate their times, whereas experiment sampling is more on the feelings and experience

• Be specific on what hour/timeframe you want people to log and what definition of leisure is so the answer is accurate