Leisure Concepts: Sport and Recreation Facilities Management - Assignment Example

Lesson Concepts Student’s name Institution’s Affiliation Course +Code Professor’s name Date Reflective Journal Lecture 1 Lecture one examined the topic; what is leisure. Four parameters were introduced to provide insight into what the concept of leisure means. The ideas include; • Free time- The definition encompasses the free time we have away from work which involves an element of freedom • Activity- Leisure as an activity that one does during their free time • The antithesis of work- The opposite of work, when one is not working then the other activity they undertake may be defined as leisure. • Leisure as an experience - A particular psychological experience which can result in feelings such as enjoyment or satisfaction. An interesting fact from the lecture was the work-leisure dichotomy which predisposes that everything outside work constitutes our leisure. In my case, I think this is not so because sometimes when I am not participating in work, I do not consider the activities I conduct as leisure. However, I believe that the dichotomy of work and leisure time depends on an individual’s definition of leisure. Dumazedier (1967), defines leisure as an activity apart from the obligations of work, family, and society to which the individual turns at will, for either relaxation, diversion, or broadening his/her experiences as a spontaneous social participation and the free exercise of his creative capacities. My perspective is that the definition by Dumazedier (1967), provides the accurate description of what leisure means. For instance, when I am not working (during my free time), and I choose to engage in an activity such as reading and researching further on a certain topic, I do not consider this as leisure, despite the fact that the activity is done during my free time. However, when I choose to play golf as one of my favorite games during my free time, as a way to relax my mind and socialize with friends, I consider this to be leisure. I opine that the activity that one turns to during their spare time with the objective of diversion, relaxation and broadening their experience greatly defines the meaning of leisure, as opposed to the concept of the free time and other parameters such as leisure as an experience. Lecture 2 The lecture illuminates on the historical development of leisure. The segment discussed various stages of human development to highlight the development of leisure. This include: • Hunter-gatherer societies- The era was characterized by no defined ‘work’ times and no differentiation of leisure and work • Neolithic revolution-. People were more settled as they practiced agriculture. This led to involvement in other activities apart from cultivation. • More complex civilizations emerged which instigated the concept of leisure this include: -Greek origins of leisure – The emergence of class differences in the Greek society resulted in the rise of leisured class an attribute that existed among the haves. -Rome – Leisure was geared towards keeping the community happy •The Middle Ages- Leisure was open to all classes it was considered an essential component of social life •Industrial revolution- People focused more on work. Leisure was perceived ‘right as trade unions emerged to advocate for the need for leisure ’ • Australia 1945 to present - Emergence of new forms of leisure as the growth of suburbia increases An interesting aspect that I noted from the lecture is the fact that leisure has now become a product cost. Consequently, due to increased consummation, people have to work longer hours to afford a certain lifestyle. In my opinion, this fact is true; today leisure is associated with a product that is acquired at a cost. For instance, if one considers leisure as relaxing with friends in the evening after work at a pub, then there are costs related to such an activity. This includes buying drinks and food. I, therefore think that the concept of leisure has greatly changed over time. This signifies the fact that leisure is not static. Whitlam (1972) – proposed that efficient use of leisure would be a dominant social problem of the next millennium. My perspective is that in the current society, we have not reached the level where leisure is a social menace. However, I think that in future leisure will be a dominant social problem. As leisure continues to be more personalized, in addition, as technological inventions proceed such as more advanced video games and the increased use of the internet during spare time, it is apparent that with time, leisure will instigate social challenges, especially among young people. Week 3- The Benefits of Leisure The chapter talks about the benefits of leisure. Some of the key benefits highlighted include; Psychological health- Leisure can enhance improved self-esteem and eradicate stress Physical health - Improved health outcomes are attained by increased level of activity Economic health - Gains attained from Leisure activities can improve the economy. Spiritual health- Leisure can increase an individual’s spiritual experience. Social health- Leisure improves social health by reducing isolation and alienation from friends and the community An interesting factor that I learned from the lecture is that leisure is now an essential part of the national economy - not just to individuals. I think that recognizing that leisure can bring benefits to the economy indicates that radical changes have taken place in society over the years. In the previous lecture on the development of leisure, it was apparent that there was a period in human history where leisure was not considered significant to the economy, especially during the industrial revolution. The acknowledgment that leisure is useful for economic development is, therefore, a great milestone. Henderson (2006), in his book; Balance: Real Life strategies for Work/Life balance, highlights that leisure can be used to develop a balance between work and normal life. Consequently, there is a need for people to understand that it is beneficial to spend their time, money, and energy on leisure activities. My opinion of this proposal is that it is factual to argue that leisure can create a balance between work and normal life. However, I opine that focus should not be placed on selecting leisure activities that are costly. Leisure activities that are less costly exist, furthermore, they are beneficial to human health, for instance, Yoga can bring physical, psychological and mental health. Week 4- Self Esteem, Leisure, and Stress The lecture during the fourth week was on Self Esteem, Leisure, and Stress. Self-esteem is considered as an essential part of achieving success in life. Again, those who participate in leisure actively are more likely to improve their self-esteem.Imperatively, our leisure behaviors are linked to self-concept; the ‘I’ and ‘me’ where ‘I’ denotes to our ‘internalized’ image of who we are, and ‘me’ refers to our ‘externalized’ image of who we are. The self in us makes us think of how others perceive us. Imperatively, how others perceive us can impact how we perceive ourselves. For instance, we change based on reactions from others and rely on the self-fulfilling prophecy. Our self-feelings are based on four dominant positions that include the attainable self, the ideal self, ought self, and undesired self. Therefore, we can achieve self-esteem through global self-esteem, self-evaluations, and feelings of self-worth. The lecture also discusses the origin of self-esteem and effects of both high and low self-esteem. It also addresses stress and leisure. The segment defines stress using different diagrams and highlights its symptoms like depression, withdrawal, feelings of exhaustion, and sense of indecision among others. Stress is caused by life events like death, jail term, and retirement among other things. Sources of stress include health problems, disagreements, money, and many responsibilities. One can cope through direct coping approaches and palliative methods. Consequently, leisure activities can be used to divert stress. However, one must achieve a delicate balance between the two aspects for effective results. What impresses me most about the lecture are two things, one on self-esteem and the other on stress and its association with leisure. I have realized that achieving self-esteem is dependent on how we perceive ourselves more than what others perceive us. It is more of an intrinsic process as opposed to the outside attributions. Self-esteem arises when we have positive feelings about ourselves. Stress is an emotional problem that requires necessary steps or therapies to solve. Amazingly, the lecture states that leisure can be used as a buffer stress as long as one can achieve an effective balance. While such a position is encouraging, achieving a balance in that state of mind is difficult. I believe that one cannot be happy, yet they have not solved their problem. However, It is important to note one can justify the use of leisure as a strategy for coping with stress. Week 5- Theory of planned behavior In week five the lecture talked about the Theory of Planned Behavior and Constraint theory. According to the theory, planned behavior arises from the reasoned action. Imperatively, we choose to do things for different reasons that include motivation, having the opportunity, being available, and because we seek acceptability. Therefore, the theory is categorical that as rational beings, humans make systematic use of the information available to them. Again, the theory postulates that people will always consider the impacts of their actions before deciding to engage or not to engage in such behaviors. The theory advances three beliefs that include behavioral, normative and control. Further, the model offers five critical components that include attitude, behavioral control, subjective norm, intention, and behavior. Therefore, attitude and behavioral control are essential predictors of intention and behavior has a residual impact. Imperatively, past behaviors influence future conduct. However, the constraint theory stresses that our behavior can be controlled because of structural, interpersonal, and intrapersonal constraints. From the lecture, my interest was drawn to the constraint theory which postulates that we are constrained by different circumstances when making choices on our behaviors. These constraints influence our behavioral intentions. However, we have to negotiate on how we shall behave based on our motivation, expected benefits associated with the conduct, and if we can adapt the behavior or not. Again, we make trade-offs in other situations before deciding to embrace a conduct. While these are exciting perspectives on behavior, especially the theoretical understanding, I believe that the theory fails to consider other fundamental areas. For instance, situations force people behave in a certain manner. In a terror attack, how do you apply the theory, especially the trade-offs? What options does one have in such a situation to influence how they can behave? I believe that the theory offers a good perspective on what makes us to behave in a certain manner but fails to explicitly create real life situations that may be difficult to follow its position. For instance, believing in our abilities can be misleading if we do not have such capabilities. Bibliography Week One Lecture. What is Leisure? Week Three Lecture. The Development of Leisure Week Three Lecture, n.d. “The benefits of Leisure :” PPT. Week Four Lecture, n.d. “Self-Esteem, Leisure and Stress:” PPT. Week Five Lecture, n.d. “Theory of Planned Behaviour, and Constraint Theory:”PPT. Henderson, R. (2006), Balance: Real Life strategies for Work/Life balance. Sea Change Publishing Read More