Chapter 5 5 Leisure and Well-Being Colleen Hood and Cynthia Carruthers C H A P T E R

Learning Outcomes Describe the essential dimensions of well-being. Identify and discuss three strategies for managing distress. Describe the three principal determinants of happiness. Compare and contrast the contributions of pleasurable experiences and the gratifications of well-being. Identify the critical qualities of leisure that link the leisure experience to well-being. Describe the five strategies for enhancing the value of leisure in supporting well-being.

Well-Being The degree to which a person experiences positive emotion and fulfillment People who experience well-being feel happy more often than they feel sad, develop their strengths and capacities, and use those strengths and capacities in service to something greater than themselves.

Filling your life with joy is an important step in creating a good life.

Benefits of Positive Emotion Increased resilience to life challenges Greater optimism and tenacity in the face of difficulties Tendency to seek out positive situations and experiences Increased social connectedness and satisfaction

Value of a Fulfilling Life Greater longevity and life satisfaction Reduced illness and quicker recovery from illness Greater neural complexity and flexibility Ongoing personal development and growth Greater sense of purpose and meaning in life

Stress, Well-Being, and Coping People experiencing well-being are less likely to interpret events as stressful, more likely to believe that they have the resources to cope, more likely to have a repertoire of coping skills, and more likely to know how and when to use each skill.

Distress Physiological response resulting from perception or appraisal of threat

Flight or Fight Response Physiological changes that prepare people to either run from or fight off a perceived threat

Coping With Stress Emotion-focused coping Problem-focused coping Relaxation

An important way of getting the most out of life is taking time now and then to appreciate the good things in life.

Emotion-Focused Coping Target the thoughts and feelings associated with the distress. Strategies: –Examine irrational thoughts –Distraction –Acceptance

Problem-Focused Coping Take actions that directly address the challenge. Strategies: Cultivate and use physical, emotional, and social resources to solve problems effectively.

Relaxation Pursue activities that facilitate the relaxation response. Strategies: –Appreciation, reflection, and mindfulness –Noncompetitive aerobic physical activity –Nature-based leisure –Nontaxing, enjoyable experiences –Immersion in challenging flow activities –Meditation, tai chi, and yoga

Leisure and Well-Being Leisure involvement may be supportive of well-being or detrimental to well-being. Leisure, by virtue of the fact that it is undertaken freely and by choice, can provide a context in which to enhance well- being.

Well-being is supported by engagement in expressive activities like music that allow you to develop yourself fully.

Positive Qualities of Leisure and Well-Being Positive emotion in anticipation, experience, or recollection Engagement with a sense of freedom or personal control Engagement motivated primarily by anticipation of rewards inherent in the experience Change in level of engagement from previous activity

Leisure That Undermines Well-Being Leisure that damages self or others, such as drugs, alcohol, gambling, vandalism Leisure that is out of balance with other life domains or that harms other domains Hedonism: –Pursuing pleasure and evading pain –Avoiding the hard work and self-sacrifice associated with the cultivation of personal potential and service to others

Determinants of Happiness Genetics (50%) Circumstantial factors (10%) Intentional activities (40%)

A life filled with joy allows us to cope better with everyday stresses.

Intentional Activities Engagement in activities that promote positive emotions (such as joy, humor, and satisfaction) in day-to-day life, and cultivate a person’s potential and a life of meaning.

Enhancing Leisure to Support Well-Being Leisure can support well-being, but not all leisure results in positive emotion or the development of capacities. Strategies that people can use to enhance leisure: –Savoring leisure –Authentic leisure –Leisure gratifications –Mindful leisure –Virtuous leisure

Savoring Leisure Paying attention to the positive aspects of, and emotions associated with, leisure involvement and purposefully seeking leisure experiences that give rise to positive emotions ( Hood & Carruthers, 2007 )

Strategies for Savoring Leisure Purposefully discover a set of experiences that generate positive emotion and build them into everyday life. Pay attention to the positive aspects and outcomes associated with experience. Re-create positive emotions and experiences through reminiscing and story telling. Select experiences that require active engagement.

Authentic Leisure The purposeful selection of leisure involvement that is reflective of essential aspects of the self Based on the notion of person–activity fit and the concept of authenticity (experiencing and expressing self in a way that is true and consistent)

Strategies for Authentic Leisure Explore preferences, interests, abilities, capacities, and goals related to leisure and well-being. Purposefully participate in a variety of leisure experiences, focusing on self-reflection and awareness. Purposefully engage in leisure that reflects essential aspects of the self. Find or create a social world around authentic leisure experience.

Leisure Gratifications Leisure experiences that are optimally challenging and engaging and optimally enjoyable and lead to sustained personal effort and commitment to the experience.

Finding activities that allow you to express important aspects of yourself is central to building a life of meaning.

Enhancing Leisure Gratifications Purposefully select leisure experiences that are authentic and that afford degrees of skilled performance. Purposefully select leisure experiences that have complexity and uncertainty and thus will facilitate ongoing involvement and improvement. Use learning strategies to modify the balance between skills and challenge.

Mindful Leisure Leisure experience that involves attention to the entirety of the current experience coupled with a simultaneous disengagement from life concerns and worries

Push your limits; never stop challenging yourself.

Enhancing Mindful Leisure Increase capacity to attend to the present moment through practices that slow thought processes (meditation, relaxation) and through the use of immediate strategies to reduce anxiety (breathing, imagery). Modify thought processes that impede full engagement. Purposefully select leisure experiences that will facilitate engagement.

Virtuous Leisure The capacity to engage in leisure experiences that develop and mobilize personal strengths, capacities, interests, and abilities in the service of something larger than oneself

The greatest gift you can give yourself is to give to others.

Enhancing Virtuous Leisure Explore strengths, virtues, and capacities related to leisure and being of service. Determine and participate in situations and contexts in which one might use assets and strengths in service. Identify opportunities to be of service in the community and create a plan for engagement.