The Dark Side of Leisure - Essay Example

Leisure Name Unit Class Introduction In every culture, there are times when the people are free by not engaged in any pay work, learning or household chores. This is the leisure time and people can choose to engage in various activities. During this time, there is low or no monitoring and the time is perceived to be of low importance to the society (Hammermesh & Pfann, 2005). According to research, leisure should be optimally arousing otherwise it’s regarded as boredom. Those who perceive that their leisure time is boredom may engage in other activities which include drug abuse, pornography, gambling and crime (Watkins, 2000). This is due to the feeling that the leisure time is not exciting and sufficient. This is an effect of having too much time and little to do (Rojek, Shaw & Veal, 2006). This is the dark side of leisure that has negative consequences to the individual and the society. According to research, having too much time and little to do is harmful for the youth. The youth should be engaged in positive activities to occupy their leisure time (Ramey, Valerie, & Neville, 2005). In this reflective paper, I will look at the dark side of leisure. This will involve analyzing conditions that lead to attitudes in leisure and choice of it. I will also apply the principles of leisure to my life, explain the social psychological underpinnings of leisure in contemporary society and access other people beliefs and attitudes to leisure. The dark side of leisure occurs where people are engaged in negative activities. This involves spending their time watching pornography, gambling and indulging in drugs. This deviant culture in leisure time has been supported by the evolution of the internet, music and social avenues. The entertainment industry has been a source of many evils for the youth during their leisure time. This is due to rise in internet pornography, violence in the movies and games as well as drinking parties (Livingstone, 2008). Some of the leading influence factors to the dark side of leisure are locales and partners. Depending on the country, the time for leisure is varied. In the developed countries, time for leisure is more than the developing countries. There is more access to the entertainment joints than in the developing countries. This entices the people to go to the entertainment more than they are supposed to. The interaction that is experienced during the leisure time may also promote deviant leisure usage. In most developed countries, the youth spend most of their time outdoors. This leads to interactions with different peoples who might influence their leisure usage (Livingstone, 2008). Leisure time is meant for relaxation, playing and self expression. But for many, especially the youth, they are unable to utilize it properly. The time is taken as an opportunity to engage in illegal behaviors. This is time when most people get into problems as they roam the streets and engage in wrong activities. For the youth, there is a misconception that the time they are free is when they can engage in activities that are not acceptable (Kirkwood, 2001). This includes engaging in drugs, unprotected sex and violence. There is also a tendency for adults to engage in gambling during their leisure time, which can lead to more problems to them and society. Availability of the internet has led into a revolution where leisure time can be spent on the computers or virtual reality. The youths are in most cases engaged in watching pornography and accessing sex materials. Internet pornography has been cited as the most visited sites with revenue accounting to billions. Most of the youths have watched pornography during their leisure time as they grow up. This may lead to the youth being enticed to engage into risky sexual behaviors (Livingstone, 2008). Gambling is another form of recreation that can lead to adverse effects to the person engaging and the society. Some of the gamblers become addicted to the activity losing a lot and leading to adverse impacts on their life. The statistics proves 80 percent of the people gamble and around 293,000 have a problem for gambling. This is an issue which can lead to bankruptcy, divorce and loss of time which one could be engaged in a productive activity. Gambling is enticing as the participant develops the feeling that they will eventually win. They may then end up selling their belongings in a bid to win the lottery and later lead to bankruptcy. This problem of gambling can come to be a social calamity as seen. The fact that gambling is legal and available may lead to many of the users getting involved in it. At the moment, gambling is not well regulated and hence the participants are not restricted. There has been a rise on the internet gambling which have made many of the participants not to leave their houses to participate (Livingstone, 2008). As I look in leisure on my own perspectives, this is the time that I am engaged in positive activities. I view the deviant leisure as a form of leisure where those involved chooses to have it. This is choosing outside the set behaviors and norms in a society. Some of those who engage in negative leisure activities do so while looking for a sense of belonging or trying to fight rejection and looking for identity. To be engaged in such form of leisure, the person rejects the pressure from the society and pursue what they perceive is right without utilizing sound judgment. The meaning of leisure has been affected by the changes in the ethical codes of the modern society. The deviant leisure has some of the qualities that are experienced in the normal leisure, making it fulfilling to those who participate. The modern society has been affected by modernization, making leisure to have broad and varying definitions and usage. The information technology sector and innovation have changed the view of the leisure as time to relax and engaged in positive activities (Griffiths, 2000). Most of the youth are engaged in activities that they perceive are trendy and will gain acceptance from their peers. The internet expenditure has been rising globally as many people are able to access the internet. There is the use of hard and soft drugs during the recreation time. The modern view of leisure is mostly deviant and most of the activities that are done by the youth during leisure time are illegal. Drug use is a major problem especially during the leisure. At the moment, the cannabis industry is worth the wine industry. There are supplies of the drugs despite regulation. This is enhanced by the drug cartels who engage in black market. This has led to the debate on whether to legalize drugs and apply control so that the black market is subdued. The perception of leisure varies from person to another. For some, leisure is the time to relax, visit friends, go hiking and engage in other constructive activities. This is in contrast with those who view leisure as the time for getting wild and engaging in risky behaviors. For the young people, their perspective is influenced by the media, pop culture and the internet (leung, 2004). This leads to the diverse views of leisure among the society. Lack of proper guidance to the youth during theory leisure time can be blamed on the increase in number of the youth engaging in negative leisure activities. Most of the youth who leads irresponsible behavior may turn out to be irresponsible adults. The policy makers have to be more attentive in regulating the activities that may lead to negative leisure usage. For example, there are few laws regulating gambling in the society and internet pornography is legal. This makes it available for the people who can access it at their privacy (Rojek, 2001). The community is an important aspect in shaping how the leisure time is spent. This is through educating the youth on negative consequences of deviant leisure and also trying to reach to those who have been affected by negative leisure (Lee & Shafer, 2002). At the moment, there is less support at the community level in most countries. The personal usage of leisure is rarely monitored especially in youth and young adults. This is due to community perception that leisure time is for personal use. To fully protect people from the deviant leisure, the community, places of leisure and family are the three main pillars that should be looked at. I believe that the three pillars constitute the social forces that are important in society responsibility for individuals. In conclusion, leisure can be used positively or negatively depending on the personal perspective, time available and the surrounding. This leads to the dark side of leisure which involves drug use, pornography among other vices. The participants’ attitude to leisure affects their personal choices. They may engage positively or negatively depending on their perceptions on leisure. I take leisure to be time for positive development. This is through engaging in constructive activities and relaxing. The society faces a lot of problems from wrong use of leisure. This includes crime, gambling, drug abuse, pornography and other related issues. There is belief in society that leisure is the free time for an individual and should not be intruded. There are few restrictions on the negative activities such as pornography and gambling. The society ideologies on behaviors have also changed due to technology. There is the need for the community to be involved in ensuring that leisure is not used negatively. This will reduce the impacts of negative leisure to the society (Livingstone, 2008). References Griffiths, M 2000, ‘does Internet and ‘addiction’ exist? Some case study evidence’. CyberPsychology and Behavior, Vol. 3, No. 1, p. 211–218. Hammermesh, D & Pfann, G 2005, The Economics of Time Use, Elsevier B.V. Kirkwood, T 2001, The End of Age. Reith Lectures, London, BBC. Lee, B & Shafer, S 2002, ‘The dynamic nature of leisure experience: An application of affect control theory’, Journal of Leisure Research, Vol. 34, No. 3, p. 290-310. leung, l 2004, ‘Net-generation attributes and seductive properties of the Internet as predictors of online activities and Internet addiction’, CyberPsychology & Behavior, Vol. 7, No. 3, p. 333–348. 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