UK Workplace FItness Provision and Women: Missing Opportunities

No 4/2000 Volume 42

U.N. LIAISON NEW YORK Christopher Jornales Email: cyjornales@cs.com

ISSN 0441-9057

UNESCO Bohdan Jung Email: bjungh@sgh.waw.pl

Journal

SECRETARIAT: WLRA Site 81C Comp 0 Okanagan Falls BC V0H 1R0 Canada Voice/Fax: 1 250 497 6578 Email: secretariat@worldleisure.org Website: www.worldleisure.org

CONTENTS:

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EDITORIAL Francis Lobo REJOINDER TO KENNETH ROBERT’S ‘THE IMPACT OF LEISURE ON SOCIETY’ Stan Parker

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POLITICAL CONSTRUCTIONS AND SOCIAL REALITIES OF EXCLUSION IN URBAN LEISURE: THE CASE OF ELDERLY WOMEN IN STOKE-ON-TRENT, ENGLAND Euan Hague, Chris Thomas, Stephen Williams

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UK WORKPLACE FITNESS PROVISION AND WOMEN: MISSING OPPORTUNITIES? David G. McGillivray, Gillian Maxwell, Malcolm T. Foley

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GLOBAL INFLUENCE AND LOCAL UNIQUENESS: THE CASE OF ADOLESCENT LEISURE IN HONG KONG Atara Sivan

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THE INFLUENCE OF ACCULTURATION ON PERCEPTION OF LEISURE CONSTRAINTS OF CHINESE IMMIGRANTS Eva H. Tsai

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COMMUNITY SPORTS AND RECREATION STUDENTS’ KNOWLEDGE AND STEREOTYPES OF AGING Min-Haeng Cho, Dong-Kun Kim, Kyung-Hwan Kang

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TOURIST EVALUATION OF OLU DENIZ BEACH (TURKEY) USING CONTINGENT VALUATION AND TRAVEL COST APPROACHES F. Brian Blakemore, Allan T. Williams, Erdal Ozhan

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ACHIEVING CONSENSUS IN PLANNING RECREATION AND PARK SERVICES Daniel Hope III, Steven Dempsey

EDITOR: Dr Francis Lobo Edith Cowan University, School of Marketing Tourism and Leisure, 100 Joondalup Drive, Joondalup WA 6027, Australia tel. 0894005750, fax 0894005751 Email: f.lobo@cowan.edu.au

MANAGING EDITOR: Bohdan Jung Institute for International Studies Warsaw School of Economics ul. Rakowiecka 24, 02-521 Warszawa, Poland tel./fax (48 22) 849-51-92, (48 22) 849-53-12 Email: bjungh@sgh.waw.pl

Page layout: Anna Wieczorek Printed in Poland by POLICO-DRUK

WORLD LEISURE JOURNAL is published four times per year and issued to members of the World Leisure Association. For libraries, contact WL’s Secretariat for current subscription rates at the address above. Articles published reflect the views of the authors and not necessarily those of the WL. All published articles are peer reviewed.

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Editorial

T

his issue completes Volume 42 of the journal.

As in the first three issues, all papers have been through the review process. The papers included in this volume form a wide array of subjects within the leisure and tourism domain. Grouping papers under themes has been difficult. The first article examines discrepancies of perceptions on social exclusion. The second measures inequity of workplace leisure provision. This is followed by the uniqueness of adolescent leisure in Hong Kong and the perception of leisure constraints on Chinese immigrants. Perceptions of South Korean university students of the knowledge of the aging process is the fifth article. The final two deal with travel evaluations of beach users and consensus planning methods with users of facilities and services.

Euan Hague, Chris Thomas and Stephen Williams, Staffordshire University, UK, explore some of the tensions between political constructions of social exclusion in Britain and personal experiences of the problem as reflected in selected patterns of urban leisure. Drawing on a case study of leisure patterns of elderly women in contrasting neighbourhoods in a British city the paper highlights wider incidences of exclusion. Using the concept of a circuit of culture, the paper suggests that political representations of exclusion produce only a selective definition of the problem and, consequently, a relatively narrow range of policy responses. Using focus groups as a method of enquiry, the authors found that the population studied were clearly excluded, yet were outside the definitions provided by government on exclusion. The paper concludes by suggesting that the concept of exclusion can be better understood utilising the framework of the circuit of culture.

That understanding would encourage real social constructions of the problem.

From Glasgow Caledonian University, Scotland, David McGillivray, Gillian Maxwell and Malcom Foley discuss the changing dynamics of work and leisure within the framework of the equal opportunities debate. Using workplace fitness provision, the paper shows that women’s relative subordination to men in the workplace continues despite 30 years of equal opportunities legislation. Discussing women’s position in relation to policy provision and data from a nation-wide survey, the paper arrives at four themes: conceptual confusion; user group conceptions; monitoring and evaluation; and the formalist approach to provision. The findings identified the failure of workplace fitness provision in addressing

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women’s ‘leisure’ needs and inclinations. A fresh conceptualisation of leisure taking into account work-life balance would ensure that opportunities in the workplace don’t go astray.

Examining local uniqueness despite global influences of adolescent leisure in Hong Kong, Atara Sivan, Hong Kong Baptist University arrives at two special features. First the family plays a significant as a leisure companion of adolescents. Second, a growing popularity is observed in instrumental and intellectual activities such as the pursuit of specific hobbies and public library visits. Drawing on survey data on the leisure of school students, attitudes towards leisure and leisure education indicated the popularity of expressive and social activities, as well as increase in the use of electronic media, information and technology. These patterns were not dissimilar to that of young people in other countries, but the affinity to the family and growing hobby and library interests were unique for Hong Kong.

Eva Tsai, Griffith University, Australia, used six constraint factors to measure the perception of leisure constraints of Chinese immigrants. The six factors used were: socio-cultural; interpersonal; access; affective; physiological; and resource constraints.

The findings of the study indicated that less acculturated immigrants were more susceptible to socio-cultural, access and interpersonal constraints. Less marginal immigrants had lower levels of access and affective constraints, irrespective of their acculturation levels. Surprisingly, longer periods of residence in the host country had not contributed to reductions of any of the six leisure constraints.

From South Korea, Min-Haeng Cho and DongKun Kim, Chungnam National University, and Kyung-Hwan Kang, Kongju National University, measured the knowledge levels and stereotyping of older adults of South Korean University students.

Students showed high levels of knowledge on aging and demographic trends, diet and medication, and physical health. However, knowledge on aging and intelligence, depression, and personality resulted in low scores. These findings led the authors to conclude that students should be provided with formal aging classes to improve not only their knowledge, but to better serve an aging society.

In a collaborative study Brian Blakemore, University of Glamorgan, Wales, Allan Williams, Bath Spa University, UK, and Erdal Ozhan, Middle East Technical University, Turkey, measure tourist evaluation of the Olu Deniz beach in Turkey. They used Contingent

Valuation and Travel Cost approaches. Measures of perceptions, reasons for use and valuation of the Olu Deniz beach found agreement with other studies.

The authors were able to arrive at costs for individuals and annual revenues using Travel Cost methods.

They were also able to suggest what tourists were willing to pay using the Contingent Valuation method. Although payment for the use of the beach is suggested, Turkish law does not allow for charges, despite the restricted use of the beach.

Daniel Hope and Steven Dempsey, University of Georgia, USA, have written on achieving consensus in planning recreation and park services. Their paper describes a process oriented planning model that uses people who use services and facilities provided by local recreation and park departments. This approach stands in direct contrast to planing that relies

on experts. The rationale for the use of process planning is to develop partnerships based on shared community values, gaining consensus and commitment to implementation.

As No 4/2000, Volume 42 is the last issue of the year I would like to thank all those who have contributed to the journal. Special appreciation to the independent reviewers who have scrutinised papers with diligence and interest. The launch of the journal as a refereed serial has been successful judging from the feedback received from the many members of World Leisure. This achievement is due to all contributors and assessors of the many papers submitted. Thank you.

FRANCIS LOBO Editor

Rejoinder to Kenneth Robert’s ‘The impact of leisure on society’ As usual, Ken Roberts offers a mix of well-researched fact and controversial interpretation. There are three main points on which I disagree with him: the nature of contemporary class conflict; the process of depoliticisation; and leisure research serving the needs only of practitioners.

Ken says that ‘The growth of leisure creates a class division between leisure workers and leisure spenders”. Certainly there is a difference between people in their role as workers in the leisure industry and the same (or different) people when they spend their money on leisure. But I don’t see this as a class division. As Ken points out, many leisure workers are in poorly paid and lousy jobs and have little or nothing to spend on leisure. But other leisure ‘workers’ (top managers, administrators, for example) do have the income to be high leisure spenders.

Since the beginning of capitalism some four or five centuries ago, the basic class division in society has been between those who own enough capital to live without working and those who are forced to be employed to earn a living. Today everyone, except a few true socialists (such as myself), supports or at least goes along with this system, so it grows and is conquering those dwindling parts of the world still left in feudalism or slavery. Leisure doesn’t determine which side of the class division you are on. Leisure is time in which you can choose to be a passive consumer or an active citizen. Unfortunately, more and more people are choosing to be the former, though there is nothing inevitable about this trend.

Ken believes that “leisure has depoliticised modern populations by offering consumer choice as an alternative to political voice”. In other words, instead of voting for candidates who, if elected, will be expected to give you and your fellow citizens a better life, you

purchase commodities which, when consumed, may be expected to give you (and your household members) a better life. Ken correctly refers to leisure’s capacity to privatise, individualise and fragment and he notes that politics has become a separate profession which requires its own professional skills. His evaluation of this state of affairs is profoundly conservative.

He admits that we can be ‘disturbed, even angered, by social and economic trends (widening inequalities, for example)’ but we ‘are now able to decide that none of the parties will do anything different’ so we can ‘concentrate on defending or constructing [our] preferred lifestyles within whatever broader conditions prevail’.

A more conventional, complacent and anti-social view is difficult to imagine – anti-social not in the sense of acting against other members of society, but thinking and behaving as if those other members did not exist. Ken’s message amounts to an endorsement of self-privatisation, an abandonment of political judgement and choice to professionals, leaving them free and ourselves unfree to determine ‘broader conditions’.

Finally, Ken writes of leisure studies as performing market research for practitioners, mainly in the public and voluntary sectors. Such research is even supposed to offer ‘big ideas’, helping leisure practitioners to raise their status compared to that of other professions. Even if we accept that applied leisure research can help deserving and competent people to get better jobs, why should we restrict basic (‘big idea’) leisure research to such limited and sectional aims?

Why not take a more challenging and imaginative approach to what non-commercial research can contribute to understanding the role that leisure could play in improving our society?

STAN PARKER 3

WORLD LEISURE No. 4/2000

© Copyright by the authors

Political Constructions and Social Realities of Exclusion in Urban Leisure: the case of elderly women in Stoke-on-Trent, England EUAN HAGUE, CHRIS THOMAS, STEPHEN WILLIAMS Staffordshire University, UK

Abstract This paper explores some of the tensions between the political constructions of social exclusion in Britain and personal experiences of the problem as reflected in selected patterns of urban leisure.

To highlight what we argue are wider incidences of exclusion, the paper draws on a case study of the leisure patterns of elderly women in contrasting urban neighbourhoods in a British city. Using Johnson’s (1986) concept of a circuit of culture, the paper suggests that political representations of exclusion produce only a selective definition of the problem and, consequently, a relatively narrow range of policy responses.

Using focus groups as a method of enquiry, the study reveals a diverse range of exclusions from leisure sites in the city centre. Problems of identity, accessibility, affordability and fears over personal safety help to define a population that is clearly ‘excluded’, yet as the paper argues, constitute a group that lies outside governmental definitions of exclusion. The paper concludes by suggesting that a more theoretical understanding of the concept of exclusion – such as is offered by the circuit of culture – will encourage more nuanced constructions of the problem. Further, we argue that political responses need to work at local levels if the social realities of exclusion are to be adequately addressed.

Keywords: leisure, social exclusion, circuit of culture, elderly women

✴ ✴ ✴ Introduction Within the European Union (EU), significant political interest has emerged in the concept of social exclusion since the adoption by the majority of member states of the Social Charter in 1989. The concept has become influential in shaping social policy in France, Germany, Spain, Italy and Portugal (Silver, 1994; Bergman, 1995; Room, 1995; Spicker, 1997; Cousins, 1998) and, since 1997, in the United Kingdom too. Here, the government

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has established a Social Exclusion Unit (SEU) working within the Cabinet Office, charged with investigating a range of social issues and producing integrated policy recommendations.

Such approaches are particularly pertinent in the examination of processes where complex structures and influences shape social phenomena. As an essentially political process, however, the development of policies that address exclusion invites consideration of the

Political Constructions and Social Realities of Exclusion in Urban Leisure...

extent to which political readings of social exclusion match the realities of the problem as they are lived within the daily lives of citizens.

By examining aspects of the leisure lifestyles of groups of elderly women in an English industrial city, the paper offers a critical reading of some of the political constructions of exclusion in the UK, through the conceptual lens of Johnson’s (1986) circuit of culture. To achieve this, the paper addresses two key questions: (a) Do the leisure practices and experiences of residents in neighbourhoods defined as suffering from social exclusion differ significantly from those living in neighbourhoods that are not seen as suffering from exclusion? (b) Where differences are evident, do they arise from issues identified within the political construction of social exclusion, or through other variables that have not been “officially” recognised as a basis for defining exclusion?

The Circuit of Culture In framing our analysis, we are utilising Johnson’s (1986) conceptual model of the “circuits of culture” and its subsequent adaptations (e.g. du Gay, 1997; du Gay et al., 1997; Hall, 1997). This model (see Fig. 1) was developed from Marx’s description of commodity circulation and aims to assess how people produce and reproduce their material lives. The model depicts the complex interrelationships between the production and circulation of ideas and meanings, and their material representations, forms and effects (Johnson, 1986; Burgess, 1990). By examining the components of the circuit and recognising how processes interact and influence each other, “circuits of culture” have been utilised to assess interactions between a range of processes that are typically analysed as distinct and separate (Johnson, 1986: p. 283-284).

Circuits of culture have proven to be valuable explanatory tools and a number of advantages have been associated with the approach: r it offers a more comprehensive understanding than is often provided by conventional linear models based on unidirectional causality. This is because the circuit of culture aims to recognise how different processes combine and raises continuous awareness of

the effects each component in the circuit on the others. This approach emphasises the interconnected nature of cultural processes (Leslie and Reimer, 1999). r it emphasises how “meaning is constantly being produced and exchanged” at multiple sites and by multiple methods (Hall, 1997: p. 3) and by identifying five key components in a circuit (representation, identity, production, consumption and regulation), sets a critical agenda of inquiry centred on a series of fundamental questions (du Gay, 1997; du Gay et al. 1997; Hall, 1997). r it highlights the manner in which interconnections between abstract and material processes are incorporated. As Johnson (1986: p. 282) explains, “subjective forms not only exist as ideas, meaning, feelings in the heads and bodies of persons... they exist also in objective embodiments: as languages, rituals, discourses, ideologies, myths and all kinds of systems of signification”. r it emphasises the inter-related nature of public and private realms and encourages us to challenge many of the boundaries typically constructed between these spheres (Johnson, 1986).

The primary use of this approach has been to investigate how commodities circulate, referring in particular to advertising (Jackson and Taylor, 1996; du Gay et al. 1997; Nixon, 1997), but it has also been applied to tourism (Squire 1993; 1994a; 1994b; 1994c; Norton, 1996), media representations of the environment (Burgess, 1990; Norton, 1996), and the geographies of culinary culture (Cook and Crang, 1996). However, rather than examine commodities, consumers and consumption, we are using this approach to try to provide insights into the relationships between leisure and (political) constructions of exclusion. Such utilisation is appropriate because a central purpose of a circuit of culture is to evaluate how “meanings are continually reproduced from pre-existing discourses... made within... particular narrative conventions” (Norton, 1996: p. 359) and in the discourse of social exclusion in Britain, the various political narratives (see Levitas, 1998) have been enormously influential.

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Euan Hague, Chris Thomas, Stephen Williams

Figure 1. Political Construction of Exclusion: Social Exclusion in a Circuit of Culture

When addressing the component of consumption, du Gay et al. (1997) emphasise the scope for people to redefine the values ascribed by others to a product through their own pattern of usage. Similarly, redefinitions of exclusion are also made by those who experience its effects, yet it is perhaps inappropriate to perceive exclusion as “consumed” in the same fashion as a commodity. Thus, in adapting a circuit of culture for our examination of leisure and exclusion, we substitute experience for consumption in Fig.1. (See Fig. 1).

Political Constructions of Exclusion Representation Exclusion and ‘social exclusion’ in European politics are represented differently across space and time (Cousins, 1998) and European and British representations of social exclusion have tended, in particular, to differ. The EU definition of ‘social exclusion’ emphasises individual rights to participatory forms of citizenship (Room, 1995) whereas in contrast, ‘social exclusion’ is represented by the British govern-

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ment as “a shorthand label for what can happen when individuals or areas suffer from a combination of linked problems such as unemployment, poor skills, low incomes, poor housing, high crime environments, bad health and family breakdown” (SEU, 1997). Therefore, the British political construction represents exclusion as a problem to solve, but the scope of the concept is reduced by aligning it with indicators of social and economic disadvantage, eliding, for example, the identification of racial discrimination that forms part of ‘social exclusion’ elsewhere in Europe (Spicker, 1997).

Identity Consequently, the political identification of exclusion in the UK has alighted upon some familiar problem groups and locations. The initial reports of the SEU focus on issues surrounding rough sleepers (SEU, 1998a), young people outside systems of education and training (SEU, 1998b; 1999b) and pregnant teenagers (SEU, 1999a), alongside broader discussion of issues affecting residents of neighbour-

Political Constructions and Social Realities of Exclusion in Urban Leisure...

hoods in decline, such as lack of work (SEU, 1998c). The rhetoric of these reports is revealing, not just in the identification of the socially excluded, but the manner in which that identity is reinforced through a discourse that repeatedly places ‘the excluded’ outside the realm of ‘the public’ and into a binary relationship of ‘us’ and ‘them’. This stigmatises the ‘excluded’ as an aberrant group that ‘we’ need to include.

Production The SEU is very clear in identifying the routes through which social exclusion is produced, emphasising both a lack of work and family breakdown. Integration into labour markets was identified in European Social Policy in 1994 as the principal route out of social exclusion (Levitas, 1996; 1998; Spicker, 1997). The British government has consistently followed a similar line in identifying unemployment and a general absence of work as a key factor producing social exclusion and all the SEU reports produced to date have been unanimous in reasserting a pivotal role for the family in the maintenance of social relations.

Experience In making such distinctions, government rightly defines some of the critical factors that shape many forms of exclusion, although individual experiences vary widely. For example, government emphasises a lack of work opportunities as a key factor reducing qualities of life in problem housing estates, yet residents of such estates often conceive of the problems differently. Burrows (1998), citing the Survey of English Housing, reveals that issues of crime, environmental decay and absence of leisure facilities are far more pressing concerns for residents than local employment levels.

Regulation Having identified how social exclusion is produced and represented, the forms of regulation of social exclusion through a programme of remedial policies that the government has developed is, as the circuit of culture model suggests, shaped around these selfsame issues. Current policies include:

r assistance to ‘problem’ neighbourhoods through renewal schemes under the New Deal for Communities (DETR, 1998; Hetherington/ Wainwright, 1998). r the establishment of a Youth Support Service to assist young people into educational and training programmes. r a New Deal programme for the young unemployed which since its inception has helped nearly 180,000 young people into jobs (Atkinson, 2000). r allocation of funds to reduce rough sleeping and school exclusions (SEU, 1998a; 1998b).

We see, therefore, that the British government has chosen to represent social exclusion in a particular way, leading to rather predictable policy outcomes as summarised in Figure 1. There is little recognition in current government discourse that exclusion may be constructed with equal force around, for example, old age retirement or issues of gender. Similarly, in its discussions so far, government has often overlooked other areas of social interaction, such as leisure, which for some groups are of equal (or greater) significance to work and family in the construction of lifestyle and where exclusionary practices may be felt with considerable force and impact. Yet, as the circuit of culture approach suggests, if exclusion is represented differently, the understanding of exclusion in other components within the circuit will also alter.

With respect to exclusion from leisure, there are two further weaknesses that current political constructions perpetuate. First, focusing the explanation for social exclusion upon the absence of work encourages the placement of issues of exclusion from leisure into a marginal category. This stems from traditional (and increasingly erroneous) presumptions concerning relations between work and leisure as the antithesis of one another (Parker, 1983; Rojek, 1995; Roberts, 1999).

Secondly, the construction of ‘social exclusion’ is a largely mechanistic process centred on tangible (or measurable) deficiencies.1 This dis1 For example, Howarth et al. (1998) list forty-six statistical indicators of ‘social exclusion’.

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Euan Hague, Chris Thomas, Stephen Williams

regards some of the less evident or quantifiable bases to exclusion. We have previously deployed Bourdieu’s concept of doxa (Bourdieu, 1977; 1990; Bourdieu and Eagleton, 1992) to try to theorise the incidences of routine forms of exclusion that are a taken-for-granted aspect of leisure behaviours, as well as more episodic forms of exclusion that are contingent upon context. These, we have argued, occur widely across social groups and are not just confined to the economically disadvantaged (Hague et al., 2000b). Leisure participation is also affected by complex relationships between identity and empowerment that produce many instances of self-exclusion from leisure sites in which people perceive themselves to be “out-ofplace” (Hague et al., 2000a). Yet political sensitivity to the nuances of exclusionary processes and their wider permeation into realms such as leisure remains uneven.

The Case Study To assess common processes of exclusion and highlight the variable incidence of exclusion in leisure, we are conducting a comparative study of two established, though contrasting, wards in Stoke-on-Trent, England. The city of Stoke-on-Trent is in the most deprived 20% of English local authority areas, although within the city there are wide variations in socio-economic and demographic profile. Our research compares Trentham Park, a generally affluent suburb on the southern edge of the city, with Brookhouse, which is located on the city’s eastern periphery and which contains a large area of public housing known as Bentilee. The housing in both areas is primarily semi-detached properties with front and back gardens.

Census data for 1991 (Fig. 2) shows that Trentham Park would not be recognised as an area of ‘social exclusion’ under the UK government’s criteria, whereas Brookhouse typifies a neighbourhood that is experiencing ‘social exclusion’. The latter population suffers from the highest levels of unemployment and lone parenthood in the city and has the second highest levels of long term illness. Long term youth unemployment in Brookhouse is around 30%, compared with under 10% in Trentham Park (City of Stoke-on-Trent, 1991, 1996).

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Indicator Population Percentage of Stoke-onTrent’s total population Population change (1981–1991) Age profile: Children under 15 yrs Age profile: Young people 16–29 yrs Age profile: Adults 30–60 yrs (women) and 30–65 yrs (men) Age profile: Pensioners (men >65 yrs; women >60 yrs) Number of households Level of owner-occupation Level of council tenancies Level of privately rented housing Level of Housing Association housing Number of pensioner households Households without a car Lone parent households Male economic activity (16–65 yrs) Female economic activity (16–60 yrs) Unemployment Households with residents having long term illness Occupations: Class I and II (professional/managerial) Occupations: Class III (skilled manual) Occupations: Class IV and V (partly skilled/unskilled) Educational achievement: Those with diploma or degree

Trentham Brookhouse Park 15588

10664

6%

4%

+13.4%*

–13.0%+

19.9%

22.6%

18.8%

21.6%

43.6%

37.7%

17.7% 6072 85.6%* 9.2%+

18.1% 4117 36.6%+ 60.1%*

3.8%

0.7%+

0.7%+

1.1%

31.4% 21.5%+ 2.0%+

33.9% 53.1%* 6.9%*

88.6%*

80.4%

74.5% 5.4%+

58.4%+ 17.9%*

22.6%+

38.2%

42.7%*

14.2%

32.9%

40.6%

12.7%+

30.7%*

15.6%*

2.3%+

(There are twenty wards in Stoke-on-Trent. An asterix indicates the highest ranked ward in the city for that indicator. A cross denotes the lowest ranked ward).

Figure 2. Comparison of wards in Stoke-on-Trent Source: City of Stoke-on-Trent (1991)

Political Constructions and Social Realities of Exclusion in Urban Leisure...

Using a combination of household questionnaires and focus group discussions with elderly women and young adults, we have gathered a broad range of information aimed at defining and differentiating key aspects of leisure lifestyles and incidences of leisure exclusions within the sample populations. Focus group work has deployed a range a media (including video, photographs, publicity literature and site visits by participants) to stimulate discussions and focus group members have been encouraged to reflect upon how they use (or do not use) a range of leisure sites within their neighbourhoods and the wider city. For the purposes of this paper we concentrate upon the experiences of the elderly women, most of whom are widows over 70 years of age. These women meet regularly in church or community centres within their neighbourhoods and our discussions formed part of their regular pattern of meetings. A total of six discussions were conducted with the two groups (ranging in length between 45 and 90 minutes) and in this paper, we explore their leisurely use of the city centre (which in Stoke-on-Trent is known as Hanley).

Hanley has been the subject of extensive redevelopment in recent years. Significant changes include the development of the Potteries Centre indoor shopping mall (opened in 1988) and the Festival Park retail and leisure park, developed since 1989 (City of Stoke-onTrent, 1993). During the same period the city centre was extensively pedestrianised and between 1997-98 there has been an investment of £25m in a “cultural quarter” based around museums, refurbished theatres and concert halls, and a growing number of restaurants and bars.

The promotional materials describing the redevelopment of Hanley presents a new city centre, vibrant and accessible to all for shopping, entertainment, leisure and tourism. In these representations, there is no suggestion that Hanley may also be a place from which some of the citizens might feel excluded. Yet in conducting the focus group work with the elderly women, a powerful sense of exclusion surrounding their use of the city centre emerged.

First, the women indicated some complex and, at times, subtle issues surrounding identity. For older people, the formation of a new identity for the city centre through redevelopment created a sense of losing the old centre, a place that was known and understood. Residents from both areas perceived many of the changes to Hanley as working against their particular interests. The loss of small shops that had been familiar landmarks and were valued for their personal service was widely regretted, as was the demise of respected family firms. In contrast, the high street chain stores clustered in the multi-level indoor mall were generally perceived as unfriendly and often confusing environments in which to shop.

Jessie (Trentham) summarised the sentiments of women from both areas, commenting “all the decent shops have gone. The Potteries Centre is a sort of maze – you go in and you can’t find your way”. Ann (Trentham) added, “I don’t think the Potteries Centre is a place”, suggesting perhaps that the process of redevelopment had produced an urban centre that lacked identity, definition and any definable meanings or sense of attachment for these older people. Scraton and Watson (1998), drawing on a similar study of women in Leeds, make the point that much of the identity of “post-modern” cities is based upon consumption, especially of leisure shopping, pubs, clubs and entertainments. Consequently, groups for whom these forms of consumption are not central to their lifestyles, tend to become marginalised or excluded from the places where such consumption is focused.

Not only did the women fail to identify with the centre as their place, but also they did not identify with other users of Hanley. Both groups perceived the city centre as oriented towards the needs and interests of the young and that as older people they were effectively excluded. This perception was revealed in a number of ways. Comments were made regarding the types of outlets, for example, the conversion of shops into mobile phone retailers or wine bars, the nature of goods sold and the provision of restaurants and cafes. Pat (Trentham) stated, “if you want jewellery or clothes or videos, you go to Hanley”, implying

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Euan Hague, Chris Thomas, Stephen Williams

that for anything else the centre was inadequate. Her friend Freda added that “all the clothes shops are for the under twenty-fives”.

Gloria (Bentilee) echoed these sentiments saying, “them shops in that shopping centre [Potteries mall], they aren’t for our age you know.

They don’t cater for the likes of us”. A similar sense of marginalisation emerged in discussions of eating out. Madge (Trentham) complained “there are no nice restaurants” and Ann (Trentham) observed that when new restaurants do open they tend to be Indian or Chinese and, she added, “a lot of older people don’t eat that sort of food, so again they are catering only for the younger people”. Several of the women in Bentilee expressed similar views, Dorothy encapsulated the changes succinctly in complaining that “they shut all that down [old restaurants] and now it’s just bleedin’ burger thingies”.

Alongside issues of identity, both groups recognised issues of access as affecting their use of the leisure facilities in the city centre.

Some of the women in the more affluent area of Trentham (with its higher levels of car ownership) were less constrained in this respect and were able to overcome some of the perceived shortcomings of Hanley by travelling to places outside the city. The women of Bentilee, in contrast, were almost entirely dependent upon buses and over the course of several discussions, problems of transportation emerged as a powerful factor leading to their exclusion from leisure sites. An inter-related set of practical problems conspired to limit access, including the lack of direct services; the distances from bus stops to places that users wanted to visit; the infrequency of evening buses and, for some users, especially in Bentilee, the cost of travel.

Affordability of leisure in the city centre was a third concern as in both study areas, participants identified the wider impacts of having to pay for leisure activities. The shops in the new retail centres were perceived to be expensive whilst the costs of admission to entertainments, especially the theatres, was felt by most to prohibit their participation. Doreen (Bentilee) commented that “the theatres are great, but the price is high. Fifteen pounds for

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a seat is a lot of money for a pensioner”. Jessie (Trentham) made the same point in an almost identical fashion: “you’ve got to pay £15. Well the pension is only £67.50, so that’s a big slice isn’t it?” The discussions here hinted at a deeper sense of frustration. On the one hand a desire to get out of the home and enjoy some of the entertainments that the city centre has to offer, yet balancing this desire, and usually suppressing it, was a realisation that the costs of admission and the difficulties of travel effectively prevent participation.

Leisure patterns for both groups were also affected by the kinds of fears of urban places that have been increasingly observed amongst women (Deem, 1986; Scraton and Watson, 1998; Valentine, 1989). Interestingly, though, the nature of the problem was felt rather differently in the two areas. In Trentham the common view expressed was that the city centre was not safe, especially after dark. Fear of assault or mugging discouraged all but the most occasional use of facilities such as the theatres within the new Cultural Quarter. Ann (Trentham) linked these fears to the identity of Hanley as a young person’s place when she remarked that “with all these wine bars, you get youngsters hanging around. It just gives you that feeling of not being safe”. In Bentilee, the risks of going into the centre were recognised, Doreen, for one, commenting, “Hanley’s the place for muggings, i’n’t it?” but many of these women were concerned about the increased risk of having their property burgled whilst they were out. Gladys (Bentilee) explained, “the teenagers watch your routine” and Doreen continued, “if they see you go out, that’s it – they’re there”.

As a consequence of these problems, the leisure lifestyles of the women in both study areas were heavily restricted. In the Bentilee area of Brookhouse ward, there was a strong articulation of the problems of being alone and of being trapped within the home by circumstances largely beyond personal control. In both locations, leisure patterns for these elderly women were highly dependent upon the organisational work of others such as family members who act as facilitators or local community groups that bring individuals together

Political Constructions and Social Realities of Exclusion in Urban Leisure...

and create spaces in which some forms of leisure may be enjoyed. The women in Bentilee, living within a relatively poor area in which they feel vulnerable if they venture alone beyond the immediate environs of their home, valued their social group because it helped to overcome problems of loneliness. This is an aspect of exclusion that has seldom surfaced in the political debates on ‘social exclusion’, yet it comes through with both power and poignancy in the transcripts of the focus groups. Lillian (Bentilee) explained that “you get depressed, you get lonely. If anybody walked into my house you’d think I’d gone crazy. I talk to me husband’s photograph, I talk to the television...”

Discussion and Conclusions In the opening sections of this paper we asked two questions concerning differences between outwardly contrasting communities and between governmental constructions of exclusion and the experience of exclusion as a social reality. It would be misleading to suggest that there were no differences between the leisure patterns of the groups of women living in these very different wards of the city. The greater affluence and higher levels of mobility of some of the women in Trentham opened up wider leisure horizons. These women made references, for example, to eating out and going shopping in places outside the city, activities that those in Bentilee did not mention.

Critically, however, our study identifies more similarities between the two groups than differences, especially when experiences of exclusion are explored. This commonality became evident in the reactions to the changes in the city centre and the perceptions that the remodelling of the city had produced places intended only for the young. Issues of access via public transport, the difficulties of getting to some places and the risks and inconvenience of using public transport to visit leisure facilities at night were also recognised by both communities, as were the limiting effects of income and the financial costs of participation in commercial forms of entertainment.

There seems to us to be no doubt that these elderly women represent an ‘excluded’

population. They all felt a sense of being cut off from Hanley in ways that were both subjective and materially experienced. There was a perception that the city centre was “not for” these women, and this feeling reinforced their exclusion. The fact that the members of the focus groups were drawn from quite different social areas yet show similar patterns of behaviour, attitude and expectation suggests, however, that the basis of their exclusion is grounded in attributes other than those used by government to define ‘social exclusion’. The factors that these respondents do have in common are that they are female and elderly, and it is probably the latter that is the telling variable in constructing their experiences of exclusion.

By combining the views of the women with an analysis utilising a “circuit of culture”, we may derive an alternative construction of the processes of exclusion that suggests different policy responses from those embodied in the government’s initial programmes, with their focus upon issues – especially employment - that do not touch directly the everyday lives of the elderly. The British government currently represents processes of exclusion using the phrase ‘social exclusion’ that, we argue, constructs a restricted understanding of exclusionary circumstances. Our suggested conceptual lens – the model of the circuit of culture – in identifying multiple components of exclusion, emphasizes that exclusion is a process and not (unlike, say, poverty or deprivation) an outcome.

The empirical research presented here offers evidence for these different components of the exclusionary process, suggesting that there is no clear point at which we might say that exclusion starts. This has an important corollary for an indicators/outcomes oriented policy – as it equally hard to say at what point exclusion stops. What may be stated with some confidence, however, is that exclusion does not start with unemployment and end with work.

There is a requirement for researchers and policy workers to be more aware of the subtleties of the exclusionary process. Exclusion remains a discursive construct with very real impacts, frequently individualised as loneliness and a sense of social dislocation. Currently the

11

Euan Hague, Chris Thomas, Stephen Williams

rhetoric that contributes to this discourse has limiting effects on our understanding of what it means to be socially excluded. As Johnson (1986: p. 87) argues “sometimes matters with a salience for subordinated groups do not appear publicly at all”.

Rather than representing exclusionary processes solely in terms of issues of employment, income or family breakdown, we suggest an assessment of exclusion may also be developed around, for example, intersections of gender and age. This approach identifies groups, such as elderly women, as experiencing some forms of exclusion and the testimonies of those with whom we have worked show that exclusion is produced through basic and rather familiar processes: lack of mobility, financial constraints on participation, fears of certain cultural groups in the urban environment and issues surrounding identity. The issues if identity were especially evident in the sense of displacement produced by changes in once-familiar places and an inability to identify with the groups for whom such places seem now to be designed. The experience of exclusion was felt through an often acute sense of social isolation; a feeling of loss associated with the changes to the urban environment and the leisure opportunities that it previously afforded; and a dependency upon others to facilitate what little out-of-home leisure remained.

Under these circumstances, the regulation of the exclusionary processes facing these elderly women needs to address a rather different agenda from that aimed at creating work for the young unemployed or removing rough sleepers from the streets. Approaches to leisure provision should recognise that the effects of good and affordable bus services, better links between bus stops and locations of leisure sites, safer streets and affordable entertainments, all interconnect to enhance leisure opportunities for groups such as elderly women and produce a more meaningful sense of social inclusion. This agenda places an onus on local rather than national courses of action, although it does not absolve the responsibilities of those operating on a national scale.

However, the SEU cannot be expected to ex-

12

amine the detailed nuances affecting experiences of exclusion within specific locations that compound the everyday marginalisation of groups like these elderly women in Stoke-onTrent. The need, therefore, is for politicians at different administrative levels and spatial scales (together with planners, local government officers and members of the voluntary sector) to be sensitive towards the interconnected processes of circuits of exclusion and to co-ordinate their actions accordingly.

Acknowledgement We would like to thank Rosie Duncan for drawing Figure 1.

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City of Stoke-on-Trent (1993) City Profile. Stokeon-Trent: Department of Planning and Architecture.

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Cook, I. and Crang, P. (1996) The world on a plate: Culinary culture, displacement and geographical knowledges, Journal of Material Culture , 1, 131-153.

Cousins, C. (1998) Social exclusion in Europe: paradigms of social disadvantage in Germany, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom, Policy and Politics , 26, 127-146.

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Deem, R. (1986) All Work and No Play: the Sociology of Women and Leisure . Milton Keynes: Open University.

DETR (1998) New Deal for Communities . Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions, Eland House, Bressenden Place, London, SW1E 5DU. du Gay, P. (editor) (1997) Production of Culture/ Cultures of Production . London, Thousand Oaks and New Delhi: Sage and Open University. du Gay, P., Hall, S., Janes, L., Mackay, H. and Negus, K. (1997) Doing Cultural Studies: The story of the Sony Walkman. London, Thousand Oaks and New Delhi: Sage and Open University.

Hague, E., Thomas, C. and Williams, S. (2000a) Leisure and exclusion: power, identity and the boundaries of participation, North West Geographer , 3., 3-12.

Hague, E., Thomas, C. and Williams, S. (2000b) Equity or exclusion? Contemporar y experiences in post-industrial urban leisure, in Brackenridge, C. (ed) Just Leisure Vol. 2, Eastbourne: Leisure Studies Association, 93-109.

Hall, S. (ed) (1997) Representation: Cultural representations and signifying practices . London, Thousand Oaks and New Delhi: Sage and Open University.

Hetherington, P./Wainwright, M. (1998) Blair pledges programme to bridge growing gap between rich and poor, The Guardian 15 September, 6.

Howarth, C., Kenway, P., Palmer, G. and Street, C. (1998) Monitoring Poverty and Social Exclusion: Labour’s inheritance . York: Joseph Rowntree Foundation.

Jackson, P. and Taylor, J. (1996) ‘Geography and the cultural politics of advertising’, Progress in Human Geography, 20, 356-371.

Johnson, R. (1986) The stor y so far: and further transformations? in D. Punter (ed) Introduction to Contemporary Cultural Studies . London: Longman, 277-313.

Leslie, D. and Reimer, S. (1999) Spatializing commodity chains, Progress in Human Geography , 23, 401-420.

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Levitas, R. (1998) The Inclusive Society: Social Exclusion and New Labour . Basingstoke: Macmillan.

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London, Thousand Oaks and New Delhi: Sage and Open University, 177-220.

Norton, A. (1996) Experiencing nature: The reproduction of environmental discourse through safari tourism in East Africa, Geoforum , 27, 355-373.

Parker, S. (1983) Leisure and Work. London: George Allen & Unwin.

Roberts, K. (1999) Leisure in Contemporary Society. Wallingford: CAB International.

Rojek, C. (1995) Decentring Leisure . London: Sage.

Room, G. (1995) Poverty and social exclusion: the new European Agenda for policy and research, in G. Room (ed) Beyond the Threshold: the Measurement and Analysis of Social Exclusion . Bristol: Policy Press, 1-9.

Scraton, S. and Watson, B. (1998) Gendered cities: women and public leisure space in the postmodern city, Leisure Studies, 17, 123-144.

Silver, H. (1994) Social exclusion and social solidarity – 3 paradigms, International Labour Review , 133, 531-578.

Social Exclusion Unit (SEU) (1997) Social Exclusion Unit: Purpose, Work Priorities and Working Methods. London: Cabinet Office.

Social Exclusion Unit (SEU) (1998a) Rough Sleeping. London: The Stationer y Office.

Social Exclusion Unit (SEU) (1998b) Truancy and School Exclusion . London: The Stationery Office.

Social Exclusion Unit (SEU) (1998c) Bringing Britain Together – A Strategy for Neighbourhood Renewal. London: The Stationer y Office.

Social Exclusion Unit (SEU) (1999a) Teenage Pregnancy. London: The Stationery Office.

Social Exclusion Unit (SEU) (1999b) Bridging the Gap: New opportunities for 16-18 year olds not in education, employment or training . London: The Stationary Office.

Spicker, P. (1997) Exclusion, Journal of Common Market Studies, 35, 133-143.

Squire, S. J. (1993) Valuing countryside: Reflections on Beatrix Potter tourism, Area, 25, 5-10.

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Squire, S. J. (1994b) The cultural values of literar y tourism, Annals of Tourism Research , 21, 103-120.

Squire, S. J. (1994c) Gender and tourist experiences: Assessing women’s shared meanings for Beatrix Potter, Leisure Studies, 13, 195-209.

Valentine, G. (1989) The geography of women’s fear, Area, 21, 385-90.

✴ ✴ ✴ EUAN HAGUE, Ph.D (Post-doctoral Fellow) CHRIS THOMAS, B.A. (Senior Lecturer) STEPHEN WILLIAMS, Ph.D (Principal Lecturer) (all at Staffordshire University, UK) Corresponding Author: Dr Stephen Williams, Principal Lecturer in Geography, Staffordshire University, College Road, Stoke-on-Trent, ST4 2DE, United Kingdom.

Email addresses: steve.williams@staffs.ac.uk

13

David G. McGillivray, Gillian Maxwell, Malcolm T. Foley

WORLD LEISURE No. 4/2000

© Copyright by the authors

UK Workplace Fitness Provision and Women: Missing Opportunities?

DAVID G. MCGILLIVRAY, GILLIAN MAXWELL, MALCOLM T. FOLEY Glasgow Caledonian University, Scotland

Abstract Debates around leisure and work have been central to leisure scholarly activity since the 1960s.

This paper charts the changing dynamics of work and leisure and sets them within a framework of the equal opportunities debate. Despite almost 30 years of equal opportunities legislation, women’s relative subordination to men in the workplace continues to make headlines and there is still abundant evidence of lack of equality. In parallel, leisure commentators have consistently pointed to inequalities in access to leisure for women.

As one dimension of the equal opportunities debate, this paper focuses on workplace fitness pro vision. It spotlights contemporary employer perspectives on the work and leisure needs of working women, now comprising around half of the UK’s workforce. Firstly the paper discusses women’s position vis-á-vis leisure policy provision and, secondly, it considers the findings of a nation-wide survey of the impacts of workplace fitness provision. The paper draws attention to four key themes elicited from the data. These are: conceptual confusion; user group conceptions; monitoring and evaluation; and the formalist approach to provision. Finally, several emergent issues and recommendations for action are identified. These point to the failure of workplace fitness provision in addressing women’s ‘leisure’ needs and inclinations, thereby representing a form of gender inequity. There is also a call for a reconceptualisation of leisure to coincide with the merging of leisure and work through employer provision of fitness/recreation facilities. The suggestion is that government, employers and employees alike miss out on the opportunities in workplace fitness provision, primarily as a result of a flawed conceptualisation of leisure. The paper ends with recommendations and suggestions for further research in the area.

Keywords: workplace fitness provision; leisure policy; family-friendly policy; work/life balance; leisure concepts; equal opportunities; re-creation

✴ ✴ ✴ Introduction In the UK, the marginalisation of the leisure needs of women can be traced back to the very founding of the post-war welfare state. It can be argued that successive government recreational strategies have systematically excluded their particular needs. Yet it is only recently that such exclusion has been widely recognised by leisure researchers and in government policy. Deem (1986) and Abbot and

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Wallace (1990), for example, challenge the nature of leisure for women as defined in Parker’s (1972) seminal work. They argue that working women often sacrifice their personal leisure lives, not only for work but also in servicing the leisure needs of others in the household.

However, the challenge to public sector leisure provision, combined with the rapid expansion of commercial, market-led and differentiated leisure provision in the 1990s, presented distinct

UK Workplace Fitness Provision and Women: Missing Opportunities?

opportunities to address women’s leisure needs (Coalter, 1995; Foley et al., 1999).

In political terms, the election of a Labour government in the UK in 1997, after 18 years of Conservative administrations, has renewed the emphasis on social inclusion and equality for women. The government’s commitment in this arena is reflected in its establishment of government departments, headed by Ministers of State, with explicit responsibilities for women and for social inclusion. The demands on, and status of, women in work have proved an area of special attention. The 1998 Fairness at Work White paper, enacted in the 1999 Employment Relations Act, is one tangible measure taken to redress the long history of women’s subordination to men in the workplace, despite nearly 30 years of equality legislation (e.g. Dickens, 1994; Rees and Brewster, 1996; Cassell, 1996; Equal Opportunities Review, 2000). However, just how equal and fair the position of women in the workplace is has become an open question.

This paper examines the changing nature of the work-leisure relationship for working women in the UK, by focusing on workplace fitness provision (WFP) as one window upon the wider equality debate. In so doing, it draws from a UK-wide survey on workplace fitness provision in the service sector, a major employer of the 11milllion plus women now working (Equal Opportunities Commission, 2000).

The basis of the paper is the very meaning of leisure in mature, post-industrial economies.

As several authors observe (e.g. Patmore, 1983), leisure has at least three distinct meanings. In this paper these meanings are used to structure an analysis of the contemporary development of leisure opportunities provided by employers. They also highlight concerns about differential access, or possible social exclusion, of women workers from these initiatives. The first use of the word “leisure” is as a residual time concept, usually taken to mean “time off” after routine workplace, personal and domestic chores have been completed. The second use of the term is as a generic descriptor to indicate activities which, broadly, function to recreate individuals or groups. Most commonly, this use of “leisure” is associated with the idea

of recreations – activities that recreate through relaxation, and challenge or foster social, cultural, intellectual or creative development.

These activities are entered into out of free-will – i.e. there is an element of choice on the part of those who participate and, therefore, they represent active use of free-time within an individual’s lifestyle (Williams, 1995). Finally, leisure is perceived as a state of mind whereby individuals feel that they are “at leisure” in any particular set of circumstances. Most explorations of the concept of leisure include these three elements (see, e.g. Haywood et al., 1995) and this paper is no exception in its exploration of the provision of leisure (and, specifically, healthy leisure in workplace fitness provision) opportunities by employers for their workers.

Work-Leisure Relationships: An Overview The earliest UK employers who actively sought to establish a work-leisure relationship for their employees are widely recognised as the so-called enlightened paternalistic industrialists.

For example, Robert Owen in New Lanark in Scotland, the Cadbury and Bourneville families in Birmingham, and the Rowntree family in York, chose to intervene directly in the lifestyles of factory workers and their families. They provided facilities for children’s play, education and physical recreation as well as cultural pursuits – sometimes within the geographical boundaries of a replicated rural village environment close to their factories (e.g. Bournville in Birmingham).

Rose (1990) locates employer interest in this worker subjectivity to the ‘industrial betterment principle’ of the firms with a Quaker ethos. On the one hand these employers could be argued to have identified both the duties and obligations of employer and employee, and the link between the efficiency of production and the ‘welfare’ of employees. On the other hand, Marxist analysts have sought to interpret both civic-centred and employee-centred provision as elements of social control designed to alienate workers from their popular cultural roots (e.g. Malcolmson, 1973) and / or to ensure greater productivity through reduced absenteeism and greater physical fitness or mental acuity (Clarke and Critcher, 1985).

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David G. McGillivray, Gillian Maxwell, Malcolm T. Foley

For the vast majority of employees, it was industrialisation in England in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries that threw the contrast between work and leisure into sharp relief for the first time. With very large populations converging on cities to seek industrial work, leisure, by any of the three definitions given above became entirely separate of work. Leisure was, therefore, differentiated and organised in formal time segments resembling work, to avoid disruption of the process of capital accumulation. Berger (1964) indicates that the process of differentiation involved the disarticulation of the essential link between a person’s sense of who they are and what work they perform.

The establishment of the welfare state in the UK in 1946 was another landmark in the work-leisure relationship. With the state becoming more interventionist in the health, well being and leisure of the nation, active recreation was acknowledged as a right of citizenship (Coalter et al 1988). Implicit in the directions of public policies for recreation in a welfare state is the assumption that the promotion of, and provision for, an active recreation life had become an integral part of state services.

However, to argue that government policies in this arena have been confused is an understatement – for example, the main providers, local government, almost universally charged for the use of sporting facilities (but not Arts and cultural services), albeit at a level which required that a substantial public subsidy was necessary to ensure viability. Successive governments, while accepting responsibility for ensuring active recreation by asserting a right of citizenship (a statement which has never subsequently been revised or refuted) have found it difficult to ensure delivery in a consistent, systematic or planned manner.

This difficulty was further compounded by a steady stream of research throughout the 1970s and 1980s (Gratton & Taylor, 1985; Coalter et al., 1986). Findings demonstrated that policies which had concentrated upon the supply of facilities (there was a major “boom” throughout the late 1970s in the building of multi-sports centres across the UK), allied to the assumption that these would be used by

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local populations, were fundamentally flawed.

For a number of reasons, it was apparent that some groups within populations were systematically excluded from the user bases. The relatively well off, for example, were almost always over-represented in profiles of users and use, compared to their incidence in the local population. Conversely, people with disabilities, the elderly, the unemployed, ethnic minorities and women, especially those with young children were regularly and systematically under-represented (Wimbush & Talbot, 1986; Haywood et al., 1995). Until very recently, most of the research on leisure and work has neglected to focus on the under-representation of such (non-) user groups. Gender issues are included in this neglect, despite there being long-standing and marked differences between the leisure lives of men and women, as signalled earlier.

However, with changes in societal values and attitudes in the closing decade of the millennium, together with some public debate on the role of work in life, there has been a concomitant renewal of interest in the role of leisure in modern life. In particular, the notion of work-life balance has steadily gathered momentum over the past decade. Implicit in this notion is the need for – and possibly right of – a recreational, leisure life for all workers. The origins of the idea and ideal of work-life balance lie, arguably, in a reverse of the trend towards the self-centred materialism that defined the 1980s (Hutton, 1996; Lee 1991). The 1990s saw a re-orientation of inclinations towards a more socially based and paced life rhythm. Lee (1991; p24) identifies the revised priorities: ‘After the rampant materialism of the ‘80s, we’ve had a change of heart. What matters is having time for family and friends, rest and recreation, good deeds and spirituality.’

Economic imperatives define work as central to most people’s lives, necessitating a balance between free time inclinations and pursuits and contracted, remunerated employment. Beyond economic need, work is also important in psychological, even emotional terms. For, in the words of Aaron-Corbin (1999, p62):

UK Workplace Fitness Provision and Women: Missing Opportunities?

‘The way that we view our lives and personal status is usually based on how we view our jobs. At the same time, our perception of the benefits and drawbacks of a career often determines how we feel about our lives.’

With only forty percent of employees presently comfortable with their work-life balance according to a fairly recent survey (Oliver, 1998), there is a case for further developing work-life policies and practices. For employers, this has meant firstly recognising the need for such a balance and then delivering familyfriendly policies and work-family programmes to support it (Mathes, 1992). As working women often shoulder most of the household and childcare responsibilities, employers need to recognise that leisure provision may be different for men and women. Therefore, employers should not simply group opportunities around a ‘male-paradigm’ as found in the UK public sector. Universal, homogenous provision is in danger of reinforcing the weaknesses of the UK public sector in the 1980’s, as identified by Gratton and Taylor (1985). Employers may be more encouraged to consider work-life balance measures when they can be shown to deliver employee satisfaction, reduced absenteeism, increased productivity, improved company image, improved recruitment and retention, and enhanced business performance (Landauer, 1997; Vincola and Mobley, 1998).

One programme with the potential to provide some work-life balance opportunities is workplace fitness provision.

Workplace Fitness Provision: A Scrutiny The 1990s witnessed a new and growing trend in the number of employers providing health and fitness facilitates for staff in their workplaces, thereby fusing, or ‘de-differentiating’ (Lash, 1990), leisure and work once more.

Kerr (1993) suggests that both public and private organisations, firstly in North America and more recently in Europe, have implemented employee exercise programmes on the basis of finance, healthy lifestyles, stress reduction and compulsory fitness. Beyond the potential, general benefits of provision, such as improved attendance, increased productivity, stress man-

agement, recruitment and retention (Parks, 1992; Kogan, 1996; Institute of Personnel and Development, 1996), it may also be possible to increase the leisure participation rates of women in work, especially in keep-fit activities.

Thus workplace fitness provision may offer a tool of equal opportunity for leisure-deprived working women. However, the question remains as to whether employers make effective use of their fitness provision for female employees. Even when formal barriers to women’s participation in leisure activities in the workplace are addressed, informal barriers are often overlooked. For example, the type of activities offered may be inappropriate e.g. free weights rather than cardiovascular equipment. There has also tended to be an over-reliance on formalised facilities over informal, outreachbased projects. In addition, O’Donnell (1986) suggests that many programmes fail to take into consideration the local context and rely too heavily on a facilities-based model of provision. He argues that most organisations select ‘level 3 programmes’, which utilise formal fitness facilities (e.g. a gym), rather than level 1 or 2 interventions (e.g. walking networks), which could be more effective in terms of participation and adherence. Nevertheless, Health Promotion, supported by a strong evidence base, has been at the forefront of a shift away from this formalist approach towards the promotion of activity per se. The argument for such an approach is well prosecuted by Wimbush (1994, p322) who asserts that: ‘Sport and exercise programmes targeted at non-participants have often had little long-term success because of inappropriately high activity expectations. In this context, high drop out rates, noncompliance in exercise programmes and in some cases off-putting sports injuries have been widespread.’

Health Promotion, in particular, seems to have adapted to these concerns and is at the forefront of a shift away from the formalist approach towards the promotion of activity as opposed to physical fitness. This position is also supported by Fahlberg and Fahlberg (1996), who argue for activity over fitness because of its inclusivity. On the other hand, the

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David G. McGillivray, Gillian Maxwell, Malcolm T. Foley

“lycra culture”, a term used to describe a sensitivity to body shape and tone, which permeates many fitness facilities may also deter those unable to achieve it, indirectly excluding a significant number of working women.

Griffiths (1996) claims that workplace fitness provision can also reinforce inequity because of unequal demands on time between men and women, the availability of exercise facilities and organisational culture. Even the promotion of participation before and after work may discriminate indirectly against women with childcare, family and domestic responsibilities. Springett and Dugdill (1995) cite the lack of attention given to women’s experiences, claiming that their lives outside the workplace are affected by increasing stress from the demands of multiple roles, such as caring for children and elderly relatives. Similarly, Dean and Kickbush (1995) found that improved conditions of employment and family support services were needed to facilitate health-promoting everyday routines.

Many of these arguments can be framed in the language of access versus accessibility. Although organisations tend to provide access to facilities for the entire workforce, there are identifiable barriers to participation, which are often overlooked. These may be social (e.g. peer pressure, a “lycra culture”, family commitments, convenience, time constraints, embarrassment, lack of interest) or economic (clothing, equipment, additional childcare costs). Heightening the concerns, detailed evaluative evidence of the effectiveness of workplace fitness schemes is scant (O’Leary, 1994). In the absence of evaluations, Griffiths (1996) suggests that workplace fitness schemes are often ‘acts of faith’, with little scientific rigour applied to monitoring and evaluation. Glasgow et al. (1993) also criticise low levels of participation and the self-selecting nature of such provision. Certainly there is negligible evidence of a positive impact from workplace fitness provision on differential user groups, most significantly, for the purposes of this paper, women. The research from which this paper is derived attempted to address the question of the efficacy of workplace fitness provision and evaluate its UK corporate con-

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text with particular reference to the needs of women.

Methodology In an attempt to provide some insight into the impact of workplace fitness provision on women, the authors undertook a nationwide survey, completed in 1998, across a range of primarily service sector organisations.

A postal survey with a sample size of 500 was conducted, following a small pilot exercise. Seven broad service-oriented industrial sectors were selected, by systematic random sampling, from the Financial Analysis Made Easy (FAME) database, encompassing leisure industries, hotels, travel, electronics, utilities, financial and retail organisations dispersed throughout the UK. The reason for selecting leisure, retail, hotels and travel was that these often stress the importance of physical appearance among their employees, due to the implicit attention to personal service. The choice of electronics firms was made with consideration of the impact of alternative cultures on the industry, e.g. Japanese practices, which include employee exercise programmes. Finally, the utilities were chosen because of their size, which has been shown to be an important factor in organisational provision of workplace fitness opportunities for employees (Griffiths, 1996). The survey element, primarily quantitative in nature, was developed in response to the lack of information available in the UK as to the prevalence of workplace fitness provision. It investigated the type of organisation providing workplace fitness provision, their size, management structure and stage of evolution. Some attempts were also made to ascertain the main reasons for organisational support for workplace fitness provision and the barriers to provision identified by non-providers.

Two hundred and fourteen completed questionnaires were returned, a 43 per cent response rate. The survey findings were complemented by two in-depth interviews with senior managers responsible for business policy decisions in two large Scottish companies included in the survey sample population, namely ScottishPower and General Accident. These organisations are both active in the European

UK Workplace Fitness Provision and Women: Missing Opportunities?

and world markets, whilst their headquarters remain in Scotland. In addition, case study material from McGillivray’s (1997) study of Seagram and Co. Ltd was also used to widen the survey findings. These qualitative interviews sought to gain a more detailed picture of the organisational environment for workplace fitness provision and its principal role within the organisation. The main findings of this survey with respect to women and workplace fitness provision are outlined below.

Findings This section is grouped into four principal themes drawn from the detailed quantitative analysis of data from the postal survey. The SPSS software package was employed for this purpose. This analysis, allied to the more qualitative elements from the case study organisations, has identified the following four emergent themes.

Conceptual confusion Fundamentally, it can be contended that workplace fitness provision, as organised by the surveyed employers, challenges the established meanings of leisure, as identified at the beginning of this paper. Subsuming fitness activity, a leisure pastime, into the workplace precludes its definition as a residual time concept, the first meaning of leisure offered above. This could be less of a problem if the leisure opportunities offered were out with the physical workplace. However, the survey evidence found that 72 per cent of those organisations providing employee access to fitness opportunities did so on-site, usually at their head office. This has two main implications. Firstly, other studies have shown that employees prefer leisure away from the immediate work environment. Secondly, those employees located at subsidiary companies or sites often do not enjoy the same access to fitness opportunities (McGillivray, 1997). In addition, changes in the organisation of work threaten the position of the single workplace as the only site where work is carried out. When early paternalistic industrialists provided recreation facilities for employees, the workplace was a central element of the experience of work. However, flex-

ible working arrangements increasingly allow for home-working and other forms of work that do not utilise a formal workspace. Increasingly, fitness facilities located at the workplace may become inappropriate and exclusive to a shrinking proportion of the workforce. Alternative arrangements, based around access to facilities away from the workplace, may then prove more inclusive and family-friendly.

Furthermore, workplace fitness provision as an expression of leisure may not act to re-create groups, the second of Patmore’s meanings of leisure but, rather, replicate and reinforce working groups on both formal and informal levels. Some participants may therefore be motivated, not out of free will, but out of organisational pressures, to conform to the practice and expectations of other employees. Finally, it may be impossible for individuals to perceive a free state of mind, being “at leisure” when they are physically (and mentally) at work. One of the case study organisations suggested a psychological barrier to participation in their organisation. The Human Resource Director explained poor participation levels as resulting from employees’ need to leave the work environment after work tasks had been completed. Concerns over a surveillance mentality and freedom of expression were central to this flight from the workplace for leisure participation. As workplace fitness provision runs counter to the generally accepted meanings of leisure, but continues to expand, it may well be that definitions and interpretations of leisure need to be updated.

Similarly, rationales for leisure provisions, which are based on the “traditional” meanings, may also need to be re-visited. Roberts (1998) and Schor (1998) have each contributed to this debate with an evaluation of the changing leisure and work relationship and the impact of a “normalisation of unsocial hours” (Roberts, 1998) at work upon leisure in general, and family leisure in particular.

User group conceptions Conspicuously absent from explanations for workplace fitness provision in the survey is an identification of user group needs and inclinations; instead all employees are viewed as an

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David G. McGillivray, Gillian Maxwell, Malcolm T. Foley

homogenous group. Given that the leisure patterns and needs of men and women differ, as discussed earlier, the “universalising” of workplace fitness provision may even represent indirect discrimination against women; offering the same employment package to both groups may be less favourable to women than men. This view is given support by other studies that allude to user patterns in workplace fitness provision similar to those in the UK public leisure sector. The typical user is a white, male, middle class, white collar individual who has been involved in higher education (Kerr and Vos, 1993). However, recently, a workplace initiative which originated in England but was revised for the Scottish context, has begun to redress the lack of needs assessment, monitoring and evaluation of the impact of workplace fitness provision. Scotland’s Health at Work award scheme (SHAW) has over registered over 400 organisations, encapsulating over 1 in 8 of the total Scottish workforce. One of its main criteria for workplace recognition is the requirement for s workforce needs assessments to be undertaken (Borland, 1999). This scheme, which is driven by local health promotion departments, representatives from commerce, trade unions and the public and private sectors, directs the provision of workplace fitness opportunities away from formal facilities towards the promotion of physical activity per se. SHAW could then be an opportunity to reduce inequalities in participation by women.

Monitoring and evaluation The assertion of commercial motives underlying workplace fitness provision is reinforced in the questionnaire findings on monitoring the usage of facilities. Although over half (53 per cent) of respondents with facilities measure levels of use, the majority measure neither characteristics of users (81 per cent of respondents) nor patterns of use (78 per cent).

This not only reflects the general lack of a structured approach to workplace fitness provision in the UK but also, and more specifically, ignorance and/ or lack of interest in women’s participation needs and rates as asserted by Deem (1986). Levels and types of monitoring may, however, increase in the future as em-

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Table 1. Perceived Benefits of Workplace Fitness Provision Benefit Reduced stress Better employee health Increased employee commitment/motivation Improved company image Recruitment tool to attract employees Higher retention rates Reduced absenteeism Increased productivity

% of respondents (with facilities) 79 77 68 65 59 38 37 32

ployers seek to maximise the use of their facilities (ScottishPower’s Power Clubs are one example of this) and as health promotion agencies become increasingly involved in this area (e.g. Health Education Board for Scotland). As a result of the limited monitoring, most of the respondent providers are only able to identify the ‘perceived’ benefits. Table 1 (p16) charts the priorities of these benefits. Significantly, the benefits most frequently noted reflect employer self-interest, proposed above, with reducing stress, improving employee health, increasing employee commitment, improving the company image and providing an attractive recruitment tool all figuring prominently.

These figures suggest that the ‘perceived benefits’ are significant, yet most are not evaluated in any way at all. This may be due more to a lack of employee information and systems than to any specific problem with workplace fitness provision monitoring, but seems more likely to be due to the failure to monitor usage in any respect.

Formalist approach to provision Reflecting the trend towards increased health and fitness, a very high percentage (85 per cent) of the surveyed employers with facilities provide a gymnasium. However, as discussed above, the emphasis on gymnasia may be misdirected, especially in terms of cost effectiveness compared to low participation rates (Shephard, 1996). There is little indication of cost-benefit analysis being undertaken on these projects, as would be the normal corpo-

UK Workplace Fitness Provision and Women: Missing Opportunities?

rate practice on any other major investment.

This may reflect something of the legacy of paternalism in the provision of workplace fitness facilities. Nevertheless, one of the case study organisations does illustrate a change of ethos for provision. When describing the need to maximise use of his organisations’ fitness facilities, the manager interviewed described them as “a wasting asset.... and a financial overhead.” The manager went on to explain that the company was beginning to look for “added value” from all its activities.

This quotation indicates a distinct shift in attitude towards workplace fitness provision.

Many organisations are now becoming acutely aware of the cost of their investment in facilities and are entering partnerships targeting with external providers to assist them in maximising participation and outcomes. There has been a noticeable professionalisation of the corporate fitness market and this has led to the use of sophisticated marketing strategies to encourage under-represented groups to participate. In the survey conducted, nearly half of organisations with facilities (44 per cent) contracted out the operation of these facilities to an external management contractor. The concurrent shift towards professionalisation has also been accompanied by an extension of objectives for workplace fitness provision from employee benefit towards a holistic wellness concept. One of the case study organisations provides a prime example of this wellness approach. Their head office has facilities ranging from a fitness suite, saunas, aerobics studio, health evaluation and fitness assessment and therapy services (aromatherapy, physiotherapy, reflexology, and beauty therapy). This organisation recognises the role it can play as a shift occurs in responsibility for welfare from the state to employers. Yet its policies are far from altruistic. It is aware that the UK National Health Service cannot continue to provide a fast, efficient and effective service for illness and injury. Therefore, it is taking it upon itself to provide a similar service. It is hoped that this will lead to a return on the investment through increased productivity and reduced absenteeism, as well as higher morale, recruitment and retention. This model of employer intervention

in wellness has been prevalent in North America for some time, but it is only recently that UK organisations have begun to accept the arguments.

Emergent Issues The intention here is to identify the key emergent issues from the survey and the preceding discussion. The most important of these is the impact that workplace fitness provision has on the established conceptions of leisure in mature, contemporary post-industrial economies. The meanings attributed to leisure must be contextually, temporally and spatially grounded. It is the contention here that the established conceptions of leisure identified at the outset of this paper are outmoded when considered in the context of workplace fitness provision. Neither residual time, re-creation or state of mind conceptions of leisure applies to the type of workplace provision discussed in this paper. The authors, therefore, support further investigation in the area to provide the conceptual clarity missing from the muddied waters of workplace fitness provision.

Secondly, there apparently remains a systematic failure to consider the heterogeneity of user group interests in workplace fitness provision. Differential needs are often overlooked in favour of a universal model of provision. This, however, overlooks variable lifecycle experiences, not only for female employees but also for other user groups. This omission from employer provision can be addressed through the use of more complex segmentation strategies that are driven by customer (employee) needs, rather than supplier (employer) imperatives.

Drawing further from marketing terminology, employers also need to profile users and nonusers through advanced monitoring and evaluation systems if they are to identify low participation groups and address their specific leisure needs.

If employers continue to fail to engage with these measures, then the missing opportunity contention of this paper will persist. There is a danger, therefore, that neither government, employer or employee needs will be satisfied and the quest for mutuality of interest between employer and employee will continue. The risk

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David G. McGillivray, Gillian Maxwell, Malcolm T. Foley

of replicating mistakes made by the public leisure sector in the work environment also lingers. Arguably, more attractive fiscal incentives such as tax breaks are needed for employers to provide integrated approaches. Until such symbolic and substantive steps are taken, the maximisation of workplace fitness and equal opportunities is unlikely.

In closing, serious questions evidently remain over the potential of workplace fitness provision for women and other user groups.

Further research is required to assess whether workplace fitness provision and use represents individual preference or systematic bias and to consider the degree of genuine equality of opportunity in provision, into account the issue of gender differential impact.

The way forward To conclude this discussion of workplace fitness provision, a few recommendations for future action in the UK are identified. These recommendations reflect experiences both from other continents and other fields. The main proposition to offer is that organisations should acknowledge the growing health promotion literature stressing the advantages of low intensity physical activity promotion. The traditional facility-based model used by many organisations reinforces rather than alleviates barriers to participation. Encouraging the large sedentary proportion of the population to engage in some form of physical activity will benefit the health of the population more than increasing the fitness levels of those currently active. Organisations are, therefore, urged to think carefully before investing heavily in large, state-ofthe-art fitness facilities, which are symbolically important to company image, but lacking in tangible benefits to many employees.

Correspondingly, it is essential that organisations consult with the employee body, through the process of needs assessment, prior to investment in workplace fitness facilities. Unless organisations have an appreciation of their employees’ differential leisure needs, the tendency for universalism in workplace leisure provision will be replicated time and again. This paper has shown how female employees may be disadvantaged in workplace fitness provision, but

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there are other marginalised individuals and groups that must also be considered.

Finally, the state apparatus also has a role to play in the encouragement of a more sophisticated approach to workplace fitness provision. The introduction of fiscal incentives to provide a stimulus for organisations to take their employee’s health and fitness seriously would represent a positive step forward, particularly for small and medium size enterprises.

Acknowledgements The empirical findings were drawn from a study conducted by the three named authors and their colleague, Ken Waddell, from the Department of Hospitality, Tourism and Leisure Management at Glasgow Caledonian University. Funding for the project was secured from the university’s Faculty of Business.

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Abbott, P. and Wallace, C. (1990) An Introduction to Sociology – Feminist Perspective, London, Routledge Bailey, P. (1987) Leisure and Class in Victorian England: Rational Recreation and the Contest for Control, 1830-1885, London, Routledge and Kegan Paul Berger, P. (1964) Some general observations on the problem of work, In Berger, P (ed) The Human Shape of Work, New York, Macmillan Borland, E (1999) Interview with David McGillivray, Health Promotions Aberdeen Cassell, C. (1996) “Fatal Attraction? Strategic HRM and the Business Case for Women’s Progression at Work,” Personnel Review, vol.25, no.5, pp51-66.

Clarke, J.C. and Critcher, C (1985) The Devil Makes Work: Leisure in Capitalist Britain, Basingstoke, Macmillan Coalter, F (1986) The Rationale for Public Sector Investment for Leisure, London, Sports Council/ESRC Coalter, F., Duffield, B. and Long, J. (1988) Recreational Welfare: the Rationale for Public Sector Investment in Leisure, Aldershot, Avebury Coalter, F (1995) “Leisure and Social Stratification”, In Roberts, K (ed) Leisure and Social Stratification, LSA Publications Dean, K. and Kickbush, I. (1995) “Health-related behaviour in health promotion: utilising the concept of selfcare”, Health Promotion International, Vol. 10, No. 1, pp35-40 Deem, R. (1986) All Work and No Play – Women and Leisure, Milton Keynes, Open University Press Department of the Environment (1975) Sport and Recreation, London, HMSO Dickens, L. (1994) “The Business Case for Women’s Equality: is the carrot not better than the stick?” Employee Relations, Vol.16, No.8, pp5-18.

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Equal Opportunities Commission (2000) “Labour Market” paper, www.eoc.org.uk Equal Opportunities Commission (2000) “Work Life Balance ” paper, www.eoc.org.uk Equal Opportunities Review (2000) “Gender Pay Gap across Sectors”, Equal Opportunities Review, No.91, May/ June, p6.

Foley, M., Maxwell, G. and McGillivray, D. (1999) “Women at Leisure and in Work – Unequal Opportunities?” Equal Opportunities International, Vol.18, No.1, pp8-18.

Glasgow, R.E., McCaul, K.D., and Fisher, K.J. (1993) “Participation in Worksite Health Promotion: A critique of the literature and recommendations for future practice”, Health Education Quarterly, Vol. 20, No. 3, pp391-408 Gratton, C. and Taylor, P. (1985) Sport and Recreation: An economic analysis, London, E & F Spon Griffiths, A. (1996) “The benefits of employee exercise programmes: a review”, Work & Stress, Vol. 10, No. 1, pp5-23 Haywood, L., Kew, F., and Bramham, P. (1995) Understanding Leisure, Cheltenham, Stanley Thomas Hutton, W. (1996) The State We’re In, Vintage, Jonathan Cape.

Institute of Personnel and Development (1996) Key facts – Occupational Health and Organisational Effectiveness, September Kerr, J.H. and Vos, M.C.H (1993) “Employee fitness programmes, absenteeism and general well-being”, Work & Stress, Vol. 7, No. 2, pp179-190 Kogan, H (1996) “Weighing up fitness programmes”, Human Resources, March/April, pp44-60 Landauer, J. (1997) “Bottom-line benefits of work/ life programmes”, HR Focus, Vol. 74, No.7, p3.

Lash, S (1990) Sociology and Postmodernism, London, Routledge Lee, C. (1991) “Balancing Work and Family”, Training, Vol. 28, No.9, p23.

McGillivray, D. (1999) “Work and Leisure – an evaluation of corporate provision for employees” LSA Newsletter, Vol. 52, March, pp20-39 Malcolmson, R.W. (1973) Popular Recreations in English Society, 1700-1850, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press Mathes, K. (1992) “Companies can make it their business to care”, HR Focus, vol. 69, no.2, p3.

O’Donnell, M.P. (1986) Definition of Health Promotion: Part 11: Levels of programs, American Journal of Health Promotion, Vol. 1, No. 2, pp 6-9 O’Leary, L. (1994) “Fitness for Work – is it worth it?”, Occupational Health Review, March/April, pp14-16 Oliver, J. (1998) “Losing Control”, Management Today, June, pp32-36.

Parker, S. (1972) The Future of Work and Leisure, London, Granada Publishing Ltd Parks, D. (1992) “Shaping up – Corporate Fitness at Work”, Human Resources, Autumn, pp108-114 Patmore, J.A. (1983) Recreation and resources: leisure patterns and leisure places, Oxford, Blackwell Rees, B. and Brewster, C. (1995) “Supporting Equality; Patriarchy at Work in Europe”, Personnel Review, Vol.24, No.1, pp19-40

Roberts, K. (1998) “Work and Leisure”: the recent history of a changing relationship, Vrijetijd Studies, Vol.1, Special Issue, pp21-34 Rose, N. (1990) Governing the Soul: the shaping of the Private Self, London, Routledge Schor, J. (1998) “Beyond Work and Spend”, Vrijetijd Studies, Vol. 1, Special Issue, pp7-20 Shephard, R. (1996) “Financial aspects of employee fitness programmes”, In Kerr, J., Griffiths, A. and Cox, T (eds.) Workplace Health: Employee Exercise and Fitness, London, Taylor & Francis Springett, J. and Dugdill, L. (1995) “Evaluation of Workplace Health Promotion Programmes”, Health Education Journal, Vol. 54, pp88-98 Vincola, A. and Mobley, N. (1998) “Performance management through a work/life lens” HR Focus, Feb., vol.75, no.2, p9.

Williams, S. (1995) Outdoor Recreation and the Urban Environment, International Thomson Business Press Wimbush, E. and Talbot, M. (1986) Relative Freedoms, Open University Press Wimbush, E (1994) “A moderate approach to promoting physical activity: the evidence and implications”, Health Education Journal, Vol. 53, No. 3, pp322-36

✴ ✴ ✴ DAVID G. MCGILLIVRAY, BA (Hons), Lecturer in Leisure Operations, Division of Leisure, Tourism and Hospitality, Glasgow Caledonian University, Scotland GILLIAN MAXWELL, (BA, MIPD, MPhil) Senior Lecturer in Human Resources Management, Division of Human Resource Management and Development, Glasgow Caledonian University, Scotland Professor MALCOLM T. FOLEY, Acting Head, Division of Leisure, Tourism and Hospitality, Glasgow Caledonian University, Scotland Address correspondence to: David McGillivray Division of Leisure Tourism and Hospitality Glasgow Caledonian University Park Campus 1 Park Drive Glasgow G3 6LP D.McGillivray@gcal.ac.uk, ++44 141 3374266/4141 (fax) The contact email addresses for the other named authors are: Professor Malcolm Foley M.T.Foley@gcal.ac.uk Gill Maxwell G.Maxwell@gcal.ac.uk

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WORLD LEISURE No. 4/2000

© Copyright by the author

Global influence and local uniqueness: the case of adolescent leisure in Hong Kong ATARA SIVAN Hong Kong Baptist University

Abstract This paper examines the cognitive, affective and behavioral domains of leisure of Hong Kong adolescents. Based on data gathered through a recent study and secondar y data from previous studies on leisure of school students, the paper presents the main characteristics and recent trends of adolescent leisure. It further examines the attitudes of these young people towards leisure and leisure education. Results indicate the popularity of expressive and social activities as well as the increase in use of electronic media and information and telecommunication technology. This is a similar pattern to leisure participation patterns of youth in other countries. Hong Kong adolescents perceive the role of leisure as time free from obligations, which is aimed for relaxation and enjoyment. The data highlight two specific features to leisure of Hong Kong adolescents. These are the significant role of family in leisure companionship and the popularity of some instrumental and intellectual activities such as cultivation of specific hobbies and going to public libraries. Recommendations are made to further examine the role of information and telecommunication technology in the adolescents’ lives and to utilize the schools settings and programs for implementing the process of leisure education while involving the family as a socialisation agent for leisure.

Keywords: adolescents, leisure participation, leisure companions, leisure education, mass media, socialization ✴ ✴ ✴

Introduction The significant role of leisure in adolescents’ lives has been widely acknowledged. Studies undertaken in different contexts have indicated the unique characteristics of adolescent leisure.

Like many modern societies, Hong Kong society has been undergoing rapid changes in its economy and industry, which affected the leisure of its population. Despite being the major consumers of the leisure industry, little attention has been given to the way adolescents spend their leisure in Hong Kong. The few studies on leisure of this age group were undertaken during the 80’s (Ng, 1884, 1987; Ng & Man,

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1988). The present study aims to fill this gap by examining the cognitive, behavioral and affective domains of leisure of Hong Kong adolescents as they are portrayed in recent studies undertaken during the last decade. The paper has five parts. The first part includes a brief conceptual review of adolescents and leisure in general and specifically in the Hong Kong context. It further leads to the main questions that the paper addresses. The second part describes the methodology used for answering the research questions. The third part presents the results. The fourth and fifth parts conclude and draw some implications for future research and practice.

Global influence and local uniqueness: the case of adolescent leisure in Hong Kong

Adolescents and Leisure Adolescence is characterized as a period in which young people are seeking their personal and social identity (Erikson, 1968; Rapoport & Rapoport, 1975; Kelly, 1996). It has been pointed out that adolescents have various social tasks to achieve such as the establishment of personal significance, self esteem, personal philosophy and values, adjustment towards independence, the relationships with adults, peers and the opposite sex and engagement with occupational roles (Hendry, 1983). Adolescence has been identified as the “peak time for leisure needs… (in which) young people have more free time and opportunities and perhaps less responsibilities than any other time of their lives” (Hendry, Shucksmith, Love & Glendinning, 1993, p. 8). Literature over the last few decades has highlighted the significant role of leisure in adolescents’ lives. Leisure has been identified as a central life domain crucial for expression, for identity development and for fulfilling these tasks. Leisure settings have been acknowledged as contributing to the development of social and physical competencies, exploring the other-sex relationship and to the establishment of social support for emerging independence (Kelly, 1996). According to Smith, (1974), adolescence can be characterized by three main characteristics socialization, transition and youth culture, which relate to the role of leisure in this age.

Being an area of relative autonomy, leisure can lead to the development of attitudes, values and patterns of behavior, which may be different from those prevailing in society. Leisure situations provide a context for expressing the values of youth culture. While at leisure, these values are least likely to bring young people into conflict with adults. Indeed, in leisure situations adults are often prepared to be influenced by the young. With their interests, adolescents have become a dominant part in the commercial market place. They influence the world of music and other sorts of entertainment among the adult audience as well. The emergence of youth culture has implications for the leisure patterns of the whole society. As noted by Roberts (1983) youth cultures are the product of the growth of leisure and they are

constructed through leisure activities. In order to understand the nature and characteristics of youth cultures one has to understand the leisure properties of youth. Noe (1969) has emphasized the potential of leisure as an important domain for adolescents’ growth by carrying out the part of the socialization process through which they learn to develop their own values as well as to understand the social and cultural values of their society. McDaniel (1982) has called the period of adolescence ‘the exploration stage’ asserting that it is the period of time for exploring leisure. Being more independent, adolescents are capable of pursuing their own interests. This may lead to the development of leisure attitudes, concepts and activities that will continue throughout their lives. Studies have identified various characteristics of adolescent leisure. Rapoport & Rapoport (1975) found that adolescents like to be involved in a wide range of experiences and are eager to try new experiences. They like to be involved in activities which include challenge, adventure, risk and revolt against authority. In addition, to these characteristics, adolescents want to be alone and at the same time to make close social relationships outside the family, whereas in the family they would like to become more independent.

Leisure activities have been identified as being sources for pleasure and enjoyment for adolescents, as well as major contributors to the development of their instrumentality (Larson & Kleiber, 1993). A North American study on adolescents’ leisure activities and their related motivation and effect (Csikszentmihalyi, Larson & Prescott, 1977) indicated the prevalence of peer interaction and watching television and the lack of productive activities. In this study watching television was also associated with deviant behavior and antisocial personality.

Another study by Klieber, Larson and Csikszentmihaly (1986) revealed that adolescents experience more freedom, intrinsic motivation and positive affect during their leisure time in comparison with productive and maintenance activities. Data in this study indicated the existence of two categories of leisure activity, the relaxed and the transitional. Whereas the relaxed category included socializing,

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Atara Sivan

watching television, reading and listening to music, the transitional category related to sports, games, artwork and hobbies. The researchers concluded that transitional activities are important in preparing youth for adulthood. A large-scale study on young people in Scotland (Hendry et al., 1993) has revealed an increase in the popularity of home-based activities such as watching television and listening to radio and a decrease in hobbies and reading books during adolescence. Among the leisure patterns outside the home, visiting friend was the most popular, followed by hanging out with friends in the street, going to discos, sports clubs, youth clubs, cinemas and pubs. Results of the study further supported the leisure focal theory indicating the transition from ‘organised’ through ‘casual’ to ‘commercial’ leisure (Hendry, 1983; Hendry et al. 1993).

The prevalence of passive and social activities was found in studies undertaken on youth in other contexts. A study undertaken on Irish adolescents (Fitzgerald, Anil, Hayes & O’regan, 1995) revealed that the most popular leisure activities were watching television, listening to music and radio, reading newspaper and magazines and socializing with friends.

A study on adolescents leisure activities in Taiwan (Yu, 1998) have shown similar findings with watching television, reading books and comic books for pleasure and listening to radio being popular as well. The high rate of using mass media and especially watching television was found in another study on school students in Israel. The majority of students were exposed to one or more mass media everyday with the television being watched by the majority (87%) and in the most frequent manner. Of the outdoor activities, watching movies was found to be the most popular activity (Ministry of Education and Culture, Division for Social and Youth Education, 1993).

In sum, adolescence is characterized with various qualities, which may be linked to the development and expansion of leisure activities. The perception of freedom associated with leisure and different leisure settings provide the contexts for adolescents’ development and preparation for adulthood. Results of studies undertaken in different contexts indicate

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that adolescents are active participants in leisure activities that are generally expressive and social in nature.

While adolescents may have the above common patterns of leisure participation, it has been noted that their leisure can be influenced by their social environment which includes of their own subculture and the wider society (Hendry et al., 1993). In that respect, adolescents’ patterns of leisure participation may be influenced by the global trends in leisure. Various global forces have been affecting leisure and can be seen in production and distribution of leisure products worldwide, internationalization of sport culture and entertainment industries (Cushman, Veal & Zuzanek, 1996). The emerging technologies have been playing a significant role in influencing the leisure patterns of people. The use of information and telecommunication technologies has been spreading rapidly into different spheres of life including leisure. The impact of these technologies is strong on adolescents who are adept in their use (Leighfield, 1997).

Adolescents and leisure in Hong Kong Like any other modern society Hong Kong has undergone rapid developments which have affected the work and leisure patterns of its population. The Hong Kong economy has moved from labor intensive manufacturing to service based industries. There has also been an increase in the productivity due to the employment of better organization and management methods (Sivan, 2000). These changes have brought about a shortening in the average working hours per week and a corresponding increase of leisure time (Ng, 1986).

The leisure of Hong Kong people has also been affected by demographic, educational, technological and mass communication factors as well as by changes in the leisure services and facilities (Ng, 1996). Over the past few decades the size of the age category of 14 -25 years old has been maintained at a steady number. In addition, there has been a decrease in births fertility rates, in the average number of children per family, and an increase in the age of marriage. According to the 1996 population by-census (Census and Statistics

Global influence and local uniqueness: the case of adolescent leisure in Hong Kong

Department, 1996), the proportion of the number of never married in each age group has increased substantially for both males and females which indicate on a trend towards longer periods of singlehood. There has also been an increase in the educational attainment of the population. Like the global trend, Hong Kong has been experiencing rapid developments of technology and mass communication which has affected the people’s consumption of different media channels as sources for information and entertainment. An increase in leisure services and facilities is another factor affecting the leisure pursuits of Hong Kong people.

The population has access to a wide range of leisure activities and several sporting and cultural bodies have been established to facilitate community access to leisure opportunities.

Despite being major consumers of the leisure industry, there has been little research on adolescents’ leisure in Hong Kong. The few studies on leisure participation of adolescents were conducted mainly during the 80s. Results then indicated the domination of television watching as the major leisure activity among young people (Ng, 1984), and the existence of some differences in leisure patterns between males and females where males engaged more in physical activities and females more in social and household activities (Ng & Man, 1988). In another study association was found between parent and peer orientations and the type of leisure activities performed by adolescents (Ng, 1987).

Drawing on the above review, the present paper addresses three questions: 1. What are the main characteristics of leisure of Hong Kong adolescents in terms of participation and companions?

2. How has the leisure participation of adolescents changed over the past two decades as exemplified in the use of mass media?

3. What are the prevailing attitudes of Hong Kong adolescents towards the aims of leisure and leisure education?

Methodology, sample and procedure In order to respond to the three research questions, the following methodology, sample and procedures were employed:

Question 1 Data for this study were extracted from a large-scale study on the physical and psychological dimensions of leisure of school children. The study used the Leisure and Well-being (L & W) Package developed by Sivan and Fung (1998) in order to collect information on respondents’ leisure participation, preferences, attitudes and satisfaction, as well as on different aspects of their mental and physical wellbeing. Using a stratified sampling by district, type of school (primary and secondary) and by level of education (primary 6 to secondary seven), data were collected from a sample of 8079 students aged 11-18 from 38 schools around the territory representing all the districts in Hong Kong. The sample comprised of 48.3% males and 51.7% females. Students were presented with a list of 58 activities and were asked to indicate whether they participate in each activity in the previous month, their frequency of participation and with whom they participated in the activity.

Question 2 Comparison was made between the results obtained from the above study and results of two previous studies on adolescent leisure in Hong Kong. The first was conducted in 1983 on 1403 secondary school students (Ng, 1984). The second was a territory-wide leisure survey undertaken by the author in 1993 (Sivan & Robertson, 1995) from which, data on secondary school students (N= 796) were extracted. In both studies, data were obtained from a self-administered questionnaire. The respondents were presented with a checklist of activities and asked to indicate whether they had participated in these activities in the previous month. Since the list of activities was not identical across the three studies, a comparison of percentage and frequency of participation was considered to be inappropriate. However, in view of the popularity of mass media activities across the three studies, it was decided to concentrate on this predominant area of adolescent leisure.

Question 3 Secondary data were extracted from a study undertaken by the author in 1991 on secondary school students (N=1187) (Sivan,

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Atara Sivan

1991) Data were obtained using a self-administered questionnaire soliciting students’ views about the aim of leisure and leisure education and the role of school as socializing agent for leisure.

Results Main characteristics of adolescent leisure Table 1 shows the most popular leisure activities of Hong Kong students. These activities are mainly social and entertainment and involve the use of mass media, information and communication technology. Like their counterparts, Hong Kong adolescents like to participate in expressive activities and make use of the development of mass media and communication to enjoy their leisure time. An interesting feature is the popularity of ‘going to public libraries’ which is intellectual in nature and of ‘painting, drawing, sketching’ which involve the cultivation of personal interests and hobbies. The table also indicates the comparatively low popularity of physical activity during leisure.

Data gathered on the leisure companionship in all the 58 activities showed that in one quarter of the cases, activities were undertaken Table 1. Top fifteen leisure activities of HK students (N=8079) Activity Watching TV, LD, CVD, DVD Non-academic readings, like plays, poetr y, newspapers, magazines, comics, books Going to teahouses, fast food shops Listening to radio, CD, tapes Talking on the telephone Playing electronic, computer or TV games Shopping Chat with family members Eating out (dinner) Ball games such as football, tennis, badminton, squash, basketball, table tennis, bowling Going to public libraries Playing with cards, chess Visit friends / schoolmates and play with them Painting, drawing, sketching Walking (in parks, etc.)

28

% 97.2 89.4 86.8 85.9 83.0 73.9 71.5 70.2 67.4

66.5 59.5 54.2 52.7 40.8 40.6

in the company of family members. Family was found to be the major companion in one third of interest activities such as hobbies and in activities where mass media was used. In addition, the family was the major companion in almost half of the entertainment and social activities undertaken by the respondents.

Table 2 shows the leisure companions in the most popular activities. The term ‘family’ refers to parents and siblings and the term ‘relatives’ refers to those relations beyond the nuclear family. While friends were present in some social and physical activities such as ‘visiting friends and playing together’, ‘talking on the telephone’, ‘playing ball games’ and ‘walking in parks’, activities were mainly undertaken in the company of family members. These activities included ‘watching television’, ‘chatting’, ‘eating out (dinner)’ and ‘playing cards/ chess’. In addition, in two activities ‘shopping’ and ‘going to teahouses and fast food shops’ family and friends play an equal role as companions. Family members were found to be the leading companions in activities that otherwise would be performed alone. These are ‘listening to radio, CD and tapes’ and ‘playing electronic, computer and TV games’. A further analysis undertaken on leisure companions across different age groups has indicated that despite the increase in the popularity of friends with increasing age, the family still maintained its significant role as leisure companion in similar activities to those shown above such as ‘watching television’ and ‘eating out’.

Changes in leisure participation over the past two decades In order to review the changes in leisure participation over the past two decades, secondary data on adolescent leisure were extracted from two previous studies (Ng, 1983; Sivan & Robertson, 1995) and were compared with data gathered in the above study. Overall, it was found that television has been the most popular leisure activity over the past two decades. In addition, the results indicated the major role that mass media play in adolescent leisure. Figure 1 shows the percentage of adolescents who participated in leisure activities which involved the use of mass media. It can

Global influence and local uniqueness: the case of adolescent leisure in Hong Kong

Table 2. Leisure companions in the most popular leisure activities Companion

N

Family %

7724

75.9

2.1

7079 6732 6720 6480 5845 5432 5447 5241

10.9 43.7 29.5 1.7 32.1 43.3 90.3 67.4

5205 4655 4265 4065 3251 3098

11.9 15.3 44.9 5.7 8.3 27.1

Activity Watching TV, LD, CVD, DVD Non-academic readings, like plays, poetry, newspapers, magazines, comics, books Going to teahouses, fast food shops Listening to radio, CD, tapes Talking on the telephone Playing electronic, computer or TV games Shopping Chat with family members Eating out (dinner) Ball games such as football, tennis, badminton, squash, basketball, table tennis, bowling Going to public libraries Playing with cards, chess Visit friends / schoolmates and play with them Painting, drawing, sketching Walking (in parks, etc.)

be seen that there has been an increase in the use of all types of media over the years with an introduction of electronic games and Internet over the past decade. Whereas, there was a great increase in watching movies from 1983 to 1993, there has been a very small increase in this activity between 1993 to 1999. This can be explained by the introduction of homebased media over the past decade.

A recent survey on the influence of media on youth (Leung, 1999) supports the findings of our study suggesting the high popularity of television in the provision of information and entertainment. That survey further suggested

Relatives Friends % %

Alone %

Others %

8.1

13.1

0.9

0.6 3.2 1.2 0.8 2.9 3.0 1.9 11.9

9.4 44.6 6.2 89.4 18.3 43.6 3.1 16.8

78.0 6.7 62.1 7.2 45.4 8.7 3.4 2.4

1.0 1.8 1.1 0.9 1.3 1.5 1.2 1.4

1.7 1.2 8.3 1.9 0.7 2.1

79.9 48.0 40.7 81.2 25.7 21.1

4.5 34.3 4.4 10.0 62.8 46.6

2.1 1.2 1.7 1.3 2.5 3.1

that electronic games and magazines have replaced films and comic books over the past decade in terms of their entertainment value.

As noted by Ng (1996) the Hong Kong society have been rapidly facilitated with various developed technological options such as wireless television, VCR, laser disc and most recently the interactive television. The interactive television, which was introduced in 1998, includes various on-demand services such as news, education, and videos, music, Karaoke, horse racing, home shopping and home banking. About 100,000 people have already registered for the service. A recent survey (MDR

Figure 1. Changes in mass media use in leisure among HK adolescents during the past two decades

29

Atara Sivan

Technology Limited, 1998) explored a rapidly increasing subscription to other services, which allow the use of different channels. Being major consumers of the leisure industry, Hong Kong adolescents have been making use of these recent developments in information and communication technology.

The present study also explores the increase in use of computers which may take over the use of other media such as movies.

Recent report by the Telecom Association of Hong Kong (1999) reported that there has been a great annual increase in the usage of Internet. There are more than one million computers in Hong Kong and about seventy thousands Internet users. Adolescents do not fall behind in that respect as well. A recent survey on 3640 secondary school students (Positive Living United Services, 2000) indicated that 90% of students participated in computer information technology related activities such as Internet surfing and ICQ. The above trend in the use of mass media among Hong Kong adolescents echoes similar trends of media use among adolescents in other countries. For example, a recent study on Australian youth has pointed out the increase in use of electronic media. Results suggest that the on-line services such as Internet are becoming a favorable option to adolescents during their leisure time and may replace other media which are more passive in nature (Cupit, M., Nugent, S & Ramsay, G., 1998).

Adolescents’ views towards leisure and leisure education To find out the views of Hong Kong adolescents towards leisure and leisure education, data were extracted from a study on secondary school students’ and teachers’ attitudes towards these aspects (Sivan, 1991). Respondents were presented with a list of statements relating to different aims of leisure including personal, societal, expressive and instrumental aspects and were asked to select the three statements that best describe the purpose of leisure activity to them. Table 3 shows the students’ views towards the aim of leisure. It can be seen that the most popular statements were expressive by nature indicat30

Table 3. Hong Kong students’ views towards the aim of leisure (N=1187) Aim To relax and rest Have fun and entertainment To be free to do things I want To be with friends To do exercise To be together with my family To increase my knowledge To develop my skills and abilities To serve the society

% 63.1 59.8 47.7 40.5 24.6 18.4 18.2 11.4 6.0

ing the prevailing way of defining leisure as a time for relaxation, which is characterized by a sense of freedom.

To gather the respondents’ views towards leisure education, they were presented with a list of eighteen meanings representing intrinsic and extrinsic approaches to leisure education and including expressive, instrumental as well as individual and societal aspects (Sivan, 1991). The students were asked to indicate their level of agreement to each of the meanings. Table 4 presents the five most popular meanings of leisure education as selected by the students. It can be seen that leisure education is viewed as a process, which goes beyond the provision of recreation facilities to help people to understand the meaning of leisure and to develop positive attitudes towards this domain. An interesting point is the prominence of instrumental aspects in these definitions.

Furthermore, students regard leisure educaTable 4. Top five meanings of leisure education (N=1187) meanings Help people to choose leisure activities that meet their own needs and interests Encourage people to participate in leisure activities through which they can increase their knowledge Help people to develop favorable attitudes towards their leisure time and to think positively about it Enable people to discover what leisure means to them Encourage people to participate in more recreation activities than they participate in today

% 78.8

77.9

76.4 70.2

69.8

Global influence and local uniqueness: the case of adolescent leisure in Hong Kong

tion not only as development of understanding and attitudes, but also as encouragement of participation in recreation activities, as well as in other activities through which people can enhance their knowledge.

When asked about the role of school in educating for leisure, the majority of students asserted that school programs should educate for leisure more than they currently do.

Conclusion The paper shed light on the leisure of Hong Kong adolescents. It explored some similarities in leisure participation between these young people and their counterparts in other modern developed countries. Hong Kong adolescents participate mostly in expressive and social activities and they make more use of media during their leisure with an increase use of information and telecommunication technologies.

Despite these similarities, the present study highlights two main features, which could be identified as specific to leisure of Hong Kong youth. The first feature is the popularity of some instrumental and intellectual activities such as cultivation of specific hobbies and going to the public library. Participation in these activities which are regarded as transitional (Klieber, Larson and Csikszentmihaly, 1986) can contribute to Hong Kong adolescents’ development and preparation to adulthood. The potential contribution of participating in such activities can be further supported by adolescents’ views towards the role of leisure education, which included the encouragement of people to participate in activities through which they can increase their knowledge. The second feature is the proximity of family in many adolescent leisure activities, which highlights the significant role of the family as leisure companion. It is worth noting that this feature was also found in studies undertaken more than a decade ago in Hong Kong (Ng & Man, 1988). This shows that despite changes in the leisure patterns over the past two decades, family continues to play an important role of being the core social unit in the life of contemporary Chinese people in Hong Kong.

Leisure pursuits of young people were found to be more family-focused than elsewhere.

Implications for theory and practice Based on the results of the present study several theoretical and practical implications can be drawn. To allow a further comparable investigation of leisure patterns of adolescents over a period of time, it would be useful to undertake a study using previous measurements. In view of the recent trends which affect the leisure of Hong Kong people such as the growing provision of mass media channels and facilitation in terms of information and communication technologies, it would be beneficial to undertake a research study on the role that these channels play in adolescents’ lives. Such an investigation is important in light of the growing use of different media channels among adolescents as found in this study.

Results of the study also bear some implications for practice. The main implication derives from the adolescents’ views of leisure education and the role of schools as well as the significant role of the family as leisure companion. It is recommended to utilize the school settings and programs for implementing the process of leisure education while involving the family. The Hong Kong Education system in currently undergoing a major review to include additional aspects of development that go beyond the mere acquisition of knowledge.

It is hoped that aspects of leisure education could be infused and integrated into the new system.

REFERENCES Csikszentmihalyi, M., Larson, R. & Prescott, S. (1977). The ecology of adolescent activity and experience. Journal of Youth and Adolescence , 6 (3), 281294.

Cupit, M., Nugent, S. & Ramsay, G. (1998). The place of electronic media in the lives of young Australians. World Leisure & Recreation , 40 (1), 17-21.

Cushman, G., Veal A. J. & Zuzanek, J. (eds.)

(1996). World leisure participation: free time in the global village . UK: Cab International.

Erikson, E. H. (1968). Identity: youth and crisis.

New York: Norton.

Fitzgerald, M., Anil, P. J., Hayes, M. & O’regan, M. (1995). Leisure activities of adolescent schoolchildren.

Journal of Adolescenc e, 18, 349-358.

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Hendry, L. B. (1983). Growing up and going out: adolescents and leisure . Aberdeen: Aberdeen University Press.

Hendry, L. B., Shucksmith, J., Love, J.G. & Glendinning, A. (1993). Young people’s leisure and lifestyles. London: Routledge.

Hong Kong Census and Statistics Department.

(1996). 1996 population by census, summar y results.

Hong Kong: Government Printer.

Kelly, J. (1996). Leisure. Boston: Allyn and Bacon.

Noe, F. (1969). An instrumental conception of leisure for the adolescent. Adolescence, 4, 385-400.

Positive Living United Services (2000). Net Q Report. www.plus.com.hk/Meida/Net Q Report 0713.asp Rapoport, R. & Rapoport, R. (1975). Leisure and the family life-cycle , London: Routledge and Kegan Paul.

Roberts, K (1983). Youth and leisure , London: George Allen and Unwin.

Kleiber, D, Larson, R & Csikszentmihalyi, M. (1986). The experience of leisure in adolescence.

Journal of Leisure Research , 8 (3), 169-176.

Shaw, S. M., Kleiber, D. A. & Caldwell, L. L. (1995). Leisure and identity formation in male and female adolescents: a preliminary examination. Journal of Leisure Research, 27 (3), 245-263.

Larson, R. & Kleiber, D. (1993) Daily experience of adolescents. In P. Tolan & B. Cohler (eds.) Handbook of clinical research and practice with adolescents (pp.

125-145). New York: Wiley.

Sivan, A., & Robertson, W. R. (1995). The use of and demand for sports and recreation facilities and services in Hong Kong – phase two report. Hong Kong: Hong Kong Sports Development Board.

McDaniel, C. (1982). Leisure: integrating a neglected component in life planning . Information series No. 245. Eric Clearinghouse on adult, career and vocational education, Ohio, Columbus.

Sivan, A. (1991). Attitudes of secondar y school students and teachers towards the aim of school as a socialising agent for leisure. Ph. D Thesis, Hong Kong, Hong Kong University.

Leighfield, J. (1997). Information technology, education and time for leisure. World Leisure & Recreation, 39 (2), 4-6.

Sivan, A., & Fung A. (1998). L & W (Leisure and Well-being) Package. Hong Kong: Worldneed Computer Consultants Ltd.

Leung L. K. (1999). Study on the influence of media on youth. Hong Kong: Commission on Youth.

Sivan, A. (2000). Leisure in Hong Kong: perceptions and participation. Journal of the International Council for Health, Physical Education, Recreation, Sport & Dance, 36 (4), 29-32.

Ministry of Education and Culture, Division for Social and Youth Education, (1993). Extracurricular activities of 9th-12th grade pupils, Hebrew and Arab education 1990/1, Part I, Special Series No. 946. Jerusalem: Central Bureau of Statistics.

Smith C. S. (1974). Adolescence. In M. A. Smith, S. & C. S. Smith (eds.), Leisure and society in Britain.

London: Longman.

MDR Technology Ltd. (1998). Subscription television survey 1998: executive summary . Hong Kong: The Author.

Telecom Association of Hong Kong. (1999). 1999 official guide to telecommunication in Hong Kong.

Hong Kong: The Association.

Ng, P. P. (1984). Socio-demographic patterns of leisure behaviour of adolescents in Hong Kong. Hong Kong: The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Institute of Social Studies.

Yu, P. (1998). The effect of “work” on the leisure patterns of young people in Taiwan. World Leisure & Recreation, 40 (1), 22-25.

Ng, P. P. (1986). Recent trends in work and leisure in Hong Kong and higher education’s response. Hong Kong: The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Institute of Social Studies.

✴ ✴ ✴

Ng, P. P. (1987). Peer orientation and leisure of schooling youth in Hong Kong . Hong Kong: The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Institute of Social Studies.

Ng, P. P. & Man, P. J. (1988). Leisure behaviour and life satisfaction of youth in Eastern district . Hong Kong: The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Institute of Social Studies.

Ng, P. P. (1996). Leisure and social change in Hong Kong. Society and Leisure, 19 (1), 91-115.

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ATARA SIVAN (Ph.D) Associate Professor and Course Coordinator Department of Education Studies Hong Kong Baptist University Kowloon Tong, Kowloon Hong Kong Tel: (852) 2339-5664 Fax: (852) 2339-7894 Email: atarasiv@hkbu.edu.hk Paper submitted to: World Leisure August 2000

WORLD LEISURE No. 4/2000

© Copyright by the author

The Influence of Acculturation on Perception of Leisure Constraints of Chinese Immigrants EVA H. TSAI Griffith University

Abstract This study examined the contributions of acculturation to the perception of leisure constraints of Chinese immigrants. Questionnaires were completed by 127 Chinese immigrants in Australia aged from 18 to 72 years. Perceived leisure constraints were measured by six constraint factors – socialcultural constraints, interpersonal constraints, access constraints, affective constraints, physiological constraints, and resources constraints (Tsai & Coleman, 1999). Acculturation was measured using three indices, which evaluated English proficiency, language use, and cultural orientation.

Indicators of level of education and financial status were also included. The findings of the study suggested that less acculturated immigrants were more susceptible to social-cultural constraints, access constraints, and interpersonal constraints, irrespective of their education level and financial status. The less marginal immigrants had a lower level of access constraints and affective constraints, irrespective of their acculturation level. However, a longer period of residence in the host country had not contributed to the reduction of any leisure constraints.

Keywords: acculturation, assimilation, Chinese, ethnicity, ethnic minorities, immigrants, leisure constraints, marginality, race ✴ ✴ ✴

Introduction People’s engagement in leisure is rarely free from constraints. These leisure constraints can inhibit people’s desire to take up new leisure activities, limit the full involvement in leisure, reduce enjoyment in leisure, or can lead to ceasing participation (Harrington & Dawson, 1995; Jackson, 1990; Shaw, Bonen, & McCabe, 1991; Tsai & Coleman, 1999).

Constraint models have been developed for explaining the ways in which constraints operate in influencing people’s leisure preferences and leisure engagement in different constraint situations (e.g. Crawford, Jackson, & Godbey, 1991; Henderson & Bialeschki, 1993; Jackson, 1990; Raymore, Godbey, Crawford,

& VonEye, 1993). However, the dominant framework of these studies has arguably been ethno-centric to western industrial majority cultures within which social realities relevant to members of ethnic minorities, that is, immigrants from a different culture and their subsequent generations, have often been neglected.

Ethnic diversity and sub-populations have increased substantially in many countries with the increased mobility of people between countries. For example in Australia, since the end of World War II, the proportion of the Australian population born overseas had increased from 10% in 1947 to 23% in 1998 (Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2000). With the formal abolition of the White Australia Policy in 1972,

33

Eva H. Tsai

there has been a diversification of the population. In 1947, 81% of the overseas born population came from the main English speaking countries (UK & Ireland, New Zealand, South Africa, Canada, and U.S.A.) (Australian Bureau of Statistics, 1994a). In 1998, only 39% of the overseas born population had been born in the main English speaking countries (Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2000). In other words, 71% of the immigrant population came from non-English speaking countries. In spite of the growth in ethnic sub-populations, research in the area of ethnicity and leisure has been piecemeal. In particular, few studies have focused on the leisure of immigrants. However research that has been done suggested that ethnic minorities, especially first generation immigrants, have been exposed to a broader range of leisure constraints than their mainstream counterparts, that is, the dominant cultural majority (Clayworth, 1986; Stodolska, 1998; Tsai & Coleman, 1999). Their experiences of additional kinds of leisure constraints have been attributed to cultural differences, racial prejudice, and institutional discrimination, such as a low priority in catering for minorities’ special needs. It is possible that as immigrants become more acculturated, their likelihood of experiencing cultural and migration-related constraints on leisure will be reduced.

This paper examines the relationship between acculturation and the perception of leisure constraints of first generation Chinese immigrants in Brisbane, Australia. In the review of this relationship, the influence of ethnicity, race, and marginality on leisure constraints of ethnic minorities was considered.

Race, Ethnicity, and Leisure Previous studies have found that ethnic minorities have a comparatively lower level of participation than the dominant cultural majority in various types of leisure activities, and in the use of outdoor facilities, urban parks, wild land areas, museums, and cultural venues (Australian Bureau of Statistics, 1994b; Bureau of Immigration and Population Research, 1994; Falk, 1995; Johnson, Bowker, English, & Worthen, 1998; West, 1989). This lower level

34

of leisure participation and use of leisure facilities might have been partly attributable to cultural, racial, and institutional factors. Two competing hypotheses, the marginality hypothesis and the ethnicity hypothesis (Washburne, 1978), have traditionally been used to explain “under-participation” of ethnic minorities. The marginality hypothesis suggested that “underparticipation” of some minority groups in certain forms of leisure resulted primarily from the limited economic resources of these people, which, in turn, was a function of historical patterns of discrimination (Washburne, 1978). On the other hand, the ethnicity hypothesis suggested that ethnic differences in leisure participation were attributable to subcultural variations in norms, value systems, socialisation patterns and expectations of the respective groups (Washburne, 1978).

However, the examination of leisure behaviors of ethnic minorities should not be based on the simple influence of either marginality or ethnicity (Gramman & Allison, 1999; Hutchison, 1988). A better understanding could be achieved by taking into account the contributions of both ethnicity and marginality. Also, there is a need to address some of the problematic assumptions of the hypotheses (Floyd, 1998; Hutchison, 1988). On the one hand, the assumption of the marginality hypothesis that ethnic minorities have a lower socio-economic status could be outdated. For example, the economic and educational status of Chinese immigrants in Australia has been generally comparable to, or higher than those of the general population (Bureau of Immigration and Population Research, 1994). Moreover, the presumption that ethnic minorities would have similar leisure preferences and would behave as their mainstream counterparts if structural impediments were removed, is an oversimplification of the complex nature of leisure behaviours. Studies have shown that differences in leisure patterns and activity preferences have persisted even after controlling for marginality factors (Falk, 1995; Stamps & Stamps, 1985; Washburne, 1978; Washburne & Wall, 1980).

On the other hand, the ethnicity hypothesis ignores the diverse cultural orientations among

The Influence of Acculturation on Perception of Leisure Constraints of Chinese Immigrants

ethnic minorities. Moreover, “race” should not be used as a surrogate measure of “ethnicity”.

The constructs “race” and “ethnicity” should not be seen as synonymous. Race is a biological concept with a socially constructed label. Race refers to genetically determined differences among human groups (Aldis, 1981), that are often determined and broadly categorised by physical characteristics or traits (Brammel, 1996). Race per se does not directly contribute to people’s leisure behaviours. Rather, it is racial prejudice or discrimination from the dominant racial groups that impinges on racial minorities’ leisure behaviours (e.g., Floyd et al., 1993; Johnson et al., 1998; Philipp, 1988; West, 1989). Moreover, race is genetically fixed and does not change over time. On the other hand, ethnicity embraces not only ancestry, but other distinct cultural dimensions such as social customs, rituals, values, attitudes, historical and cultural tradition, geographic origin, language, literature, and religion (Brammel, 1996; Reminick, 1983; Werbner, 1992). Unlike race that is fixed, ethnicity can change over time through the processes of acculturation.

Two approaches have been used to define acculturation. The monocultural approach defined acculturation as the process of acquiring the customs of an alternate (non-native) society as a result of exposure to the new cultural system (Mendoza, 1989; Orozco, Thompson, Kapes, & Montgomery, 1993). Through this process, attitudes and behaviours change towards those of the dominant cultural group (Mendoza, 1989; Orozco et al., 1993). The multicultural approach (Mendoza, 1989), defined acculturation as the process of incorporating the customs from alternate societies into the existing customs. During this process, some native traits are exchanged for those of the host’s quickly, others only gradually, and still others are maintained and strengthened (Keefe & Padilla, 1987; Orozco et al., 1993).

Studies of Australian Chinese immigrants have suggested that language was exchanged quickly whereas food habits and friendship network were more enduring (Huck, 1968; Rosenthal & Feldman, 1992). Thus, immigrants could display cultural resistance on one set of cultural values or activities while display-

ing cultural incorporation on another set (Mendoza, 1989). It appeared that cultural change occurred at different paces along different cultural dimensions.

This cultural change is particularly pertinent to the first generation immigrants. Cultural change could influence immigrants’ leisure attitudes and behaviors. As immigrants become more acculturated, their likelihood of experiencing certain cultural and migrationrelated constraints could be reduced. Yu and Berryman (1996) found that the total number of perceived leisure barriers of adolescent Chinese immigrants decreased with acculturation. Similarly, Stodolska (1998) found that Canadian Polish immigrants’ perceived importance of certain leisure constraints diminished with an increased level of assimilation.

Moreover, acculturation seems to have influenced the kind of people with whom immigrants preferred to recreate and the places in which they liked to recreate. In examining the influence of acculturation on the use of four similar recreation sites in California, Carr and Williams (1993) found that less acculturated Hispanics tended to use two particular sites, whereas those who were highly acculturated tended to use other two sites along with other Anglo Americans. This has suggested that people preferred to recreate at places frequented by people of similar cultural backgrounds, and to interact with people of similar cultural backgrounds. Similar preferences have also been found among Australian Chinese immigrants. First generation Australian Chinese youth were found to have networks that were mostly Chinese (Rosenthal & Feldman, 1992); whereas the older immigrants displayed a clear preference for participating in activities with people of the same ethnic background (Clayworth, 1986). This might be explained in two ways. Firstly, an ethnically enclosed social network could have narrowed immigrants’ choices of leisure companions.

Secondly, it could have been a means to escape from any racial discrimination in leisure, or from any unpleasant race-related legacy associated with other domains of daily lives (Stodolska & Jackson, 1998). Understandably,

35

Eva H. Tsai

most people would feel more comfortable to interact with those who speak the same language, and those that share common cultural values, because they could more easily communicate with and understand each other.

In sum, studies have suggested that ethnic minorities are susceptible to constraints that can be partly attributed to cultural, racial, and institutional factors. Examining the impact of these factors on ethnic minorities’ perception of leisure constraints would improve our understanding on leisure behaviors of ethnic minorities. The present study focused on the extent to which acculturation impacts on first generation Chinese immigrants’ perception of leisure constraints. The confounding effect of marginality (education level and financial status) on immigrants’ perception of leisure constraints was also explored.

Methods Sample The target population for the study was first-generation Chinese immigrants living in Brisbane, Australia. However, there was no effective sampling frame because there was no list of first generation Chinese immigrants living in Brisbane, and electoral rolls and telephone directories did not provide sufficient information, such as immigration status and country of origin to facilitate sample selection.

In the absence of a suitable sampling frame, the respondents were obtained through eight dominant Chinese clubs and organisations in Brisbane and by using a snowball sampling method. About half of the respondents were contacted through these Chinese clubs and organizations. Since different clubs and organisations had different operations and rules, various ways were adopted to distribute questionnaires. These included the researcher going to the clubs and organisations to hand out questionnaires and relying on agents in the organisations to hand out questionnaires. Members of the organizations were invited to participate in the survey on voluntary basis. These participants were then asked to nominate, on the last page of the questionnaire, their associates who were not members of any Chinese

36

organizations to participate in the survey. Invitations to participate in the survey, questionnaires, and reply-paid envelopes were sent to these non-club nominees. These non-club members made up the other half of the sample. A total of 350 questionnaires were distributed in 1996, and 133 questionnaires were returned, but six were discarded for incomplete data or non-bona fide responses. A follow-up procedure was not possible because membership information was not made available by the Chinese organizations. Thus a final sample of 127 was used for data analysis. Although this non-probability sample limited the generalization of the study findings, it provided some understanding of the associations between acculturation, marginality, and leisure constraints.

Of the 127 respondents, 46% were male and 54% were female. Respondents’ ages ranged from 18 to 72 years ( mean = 35.6, s.d. = 16.1). Fifty seven percent of the respondents were born in Hong Kong, 19% were born in People’s Republic of China, 11% were born in Taiwan, and 11% were born in other countries. Respondents’ length of residence in Australia varied from less than one year to 27 years (mean = 5.9, s.d. = 4.6) Questionnaire Perceptions of leisure constraints were measured with a list of 24 constraint items developed from literature and interviews with some Chinese immigrants. These constraint items included constraints that were common to the dominant cultural majority, as well as those specific to ethnic immigrants (Table 1).

Respondents were firstly asked to consider whether there were any leisure activities that they desired to take up but for some reasons they could not. Those who answered “yes” would evaluate the importance of list of constraints in prohibiting them from taking up their desired leisure activities. Those who answered “no” would proceed to another question that evaluated the importance of the constraints in inhibiting their desire to take up any new leisure activities. The same constraint items were used for the two constraint situations.

The Influence of Acculturation on Perception of Leisure Constraints of Chinese Immigrants

Table 1. Factor Analysis and Reliability Analysis of Constraint Items a Factor Item Social-cultural (alpha b = .93) Difficult to communicate with other participants Difficult to mix with other participants Feeling uncomfortable with social environment Feeling uncomfortable because of race-related reasons Feeling uncomfortable because of different cultures Language barriers Feeling unwelcome Lack of sense of belonging Feeling insecure Interpersonal No one to participate with Access (alpha = .83) Lack of provision (e.g. facilities, services, programs) Don’t know what’s available Lack of information that I can read/understand Lack of necessary skills Don’t know how to get involved Transportation problems Affective (alpha = .73) Do not think I’ll enjoy the new activities Activities/opportunities available are not meaningful Activities/opportunities available are not appealing

Factor Loading

.83 .80 .79 .79 .77 .74 .70 .60 .55

.39c

.70 .69 .67 .64 .62 .53

.75 .71 .66

Physiological (alpha = .72) Physical problems (e.g. health, fitness, injuries, tired) Age (e.g. being too old)

.86 .74

Resources (alpha = .59) Lack of time because of work/school commitments Lack of time because of family Financial cost

.75 .72 .68

Note. a Source: Tsai & Coleman (1999) b Alpha is the scale reliability coefficient. c This item failed to achieve the criterion weight of 0.5 on the highest loading factor.

Therefore, the item was treated as a separate factor.

Respondents responded to each constraint using a five-point Likert scale, ranging from “1 = not important at all” to “5 = extremely important”. The latent factors in the constraints items were identified using an orthogonal principal component analysis followed by a varimax rotation. Six constraint factors had been obtained from factor analysis to represent the latent structure of the constraint responses (Tsai & Coleman, 1999) (see Table 1). These factors included the social-cultural constraint factor, which reflected constraints in social or public leisure settings that were partly attributable to racial and cultural differences, the access constraint factor that reflected a lack of informational and physical access to leisure provisions, the affective constraint factor that referred to the lack of appeal of available leisure opportunities, the physiological constraint factor, reflecting physiological constraints, the resources constraint factor that reflected the difficulties in allocating time and money, and the interpersonal constraint factor that reflected the difficulties in finding co-participants. The score for each constraint factor was calculated by averaging the scores of items that loaded on the factor. These six constraint factors were used in the subsequent analyses. Tsai and Coleman (1999) provided a detailed description of the factor analysis.

To assess the acculturation levels of Chinese immigrants, indices were used to measure three of its important dimensions, English proficiency, language use, and cultural orientation. Items for these acculturation dimensions were developed from various acculturation scales, including the Cultural Life Styles Inventory (Mendoza, 1989), the Acculturation Rating Scale for Mexican Americans (ARSMA) (Cuellar, Harris, & Jasso, 1980) and Floyd and Gramann’s (1993) acculturation scale. English proficiency was measured by asking respondents to evaluate their ability to speak and to read English, using a scale from “1 = cannot speak/read at all”, to “5 = excellent”. Language use was measured by asking respondents to assess the extent to which they used English and/or Chinese in five different contexts: radio listening, TV/video watching, news-

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Eva H. Tsai

paper/magazines reading, language spoken at home, and the language in which the respondent thinks. A five-point scale from “1 = Chinese only”, to “5 = English only” was adopted to measure language use. The third dimension, cultural orientation, was measured using responses to five types of cultural orientation, including ethnicity of leisure companions, preference for dating or marriage partner, preference for food, cultural familiarity, and ethnic identification. A scale from “1 = Chinese only”, to “5 = Anglo-Australian or European only” was used to obtain responses. Principal components analyses with varimax rotations were performed for each of the three indices to verify that the items for each index were measuring a single dimension of acculturation. The results of these analyses confirmed that each of the three sets of acculturation items constituted only one factor. For each acculturation index, analysis was carried out to test if the items in the index were reliable measures of the dimension. The Cronbach alpha reliability coefficients of the English proficiency index, the language use index, and the cultural orientation index were .95, .85, and .72 respectively. The score for each acculturation index was calculated by averaging the scores of item responses in the respective indices.

To measure financial status, respondents were asked to evaluate their financial status at five levels from “1 = very low” to “5 = very high”. Actual income was not requested because during a pre-test of the questionnaire most participants suggested that “income” was sensitive information, particularly to those who had income and assets overseas. Five levels of education were measured, from “1 = some primary” to “5 = postgraduate studies”.

The questionnaire, which had been pretested, was presented in both English and Chinese, thus giving respondents the option to respond in either language. Questionnaires, with explanations and instructions, were self-administered. Completed questionnaires were returned in a reply-paid envelope.

Analyses To maximize the sample size, the few missing responses in the constraints, acculturation,

38

and marginality questions were replaced using the expectation-maximization (EM) method in SPSS 10. Since previous analysis of the data (Tsai & Coleman, 1999) had shown that there were no significant differences in the level of perceived importance of the constraint dimensions between the two constraint situations, the responses for the two constraint situations were analyzed together. To assess the contributions of acculturation and marginality in predicting the six dimensions of perceived leisure constraints, a series of hierarchical multiple regression analyses were conducted. The constraint situations (desired to take up leisure activities but could not, and not desired to take up leisure activities) were entered in the first block as a dummy variable in all the analyses to partial out any situational effects. This was followed by entering acculturation and/or marginality indices in separate blocks. The extent of change (additional variance explained and its significance) in the prediction of the perceptions of various constraints was used to assess the predictive capacity of the predictors on these constraints.

Results Capacity of Acculturation in Predicting Perception of Leisure Constraints The constraint situations did not explain any variance of Chinese immigrants’ perception of leisure constraints in any of the regression analyses. The first series of regression analyses focused on evaluating the predictive capacity of acculturation (English proficiency, English use, cultural orientation) on perception of leisure constraints when the predictive capacities of marginality indices were not considered. The resulting models suggested that acculturation indices did not significantly predict respondents’ perception of resources constraints, affective constraints, and physiological constraints. However, the acculturation indices significantly predicted perception of sociocultural constraints (R2 change = .18, F change = 9.15, p = .000, df = 3, 122), access constraints (R2 change = .22, F change = 11.50, p = .000, df = 3, 122), and interpersonal constraints (R2 change = .08, F change = 3.72, p = .013, df = 3, 122). In all the

The Influence of Acculturation on Perception of Leisure Constraints of Chinese Immigrants

models, the beta values of the significant acculturation indices suggested that the higher levels of acculturation were associated with lower levels of constraints. An examination of the significance of individual acculturation indices in explaining perception of constraints suggested that English proficiency had made significant individual contributions in the explanation of sociocultural constraints (β = -.33, t = -3.32, p = .001) and access constraints (β = -.39, t = -3.97, p = .000).

A second series of analyses was conducted where marginality indices (education level, financial status) were entered into the model before acculturation indices were entered. The resulting models suggested that even after taking into account the influence of marginality, the acculturation indices provided a significant additional contribution to the explanation of sociocultural constraints (R2 change = .10, F change = 5.09, p = .002, df = 3, 120), access constraints (R2 change = .12, F change = 6.32, p = .001, df = 3, 120), and interpersonal constraints (R2 change = .09, F change = 3.73, p = .013, df = 3, 120). English proficiency persisted as the significant individual acculturation index in the prediction of access constraints (β = -.24, t = -2.01, p = .047) but became not significant (marginally) in the prediction of sociocultural constraints (β = -.24, t = -1.94, p = .054). All the significant predictions were in the expected direction, that is, higher levels of acculturation were always associated with lower levels of perceived constraints.

3.13, p = .047, df = 2, 123) when tested without considering acculturation.

When the influence of acculturation was partialed out by entry into the model before marginality indices were entered, marginality’s contributions in explaining perception of sociocultural (R2 change = .01, F change = .69, p = .504, df = 2, 120) and resources constraints (R2 change = .04, F change = 2.28, p = .106 df = 2, 120) became insignificant.

However, marginality’s prediction on access constraints (R2 change = .05, F change = 4.24, p = .017, df = 2, 120) and affective constraints (R2 change = .05, F change = 3.58, p = .031, df = 2, 120) remained significant. Examination of the individual contributions of marginality indices showed that education level had made a significant individual contribution in explaining the variance of affective constraints (β = -.28, t = -2.65, p = .009) whereas financial status had made a significant individual contribution in explaining the variance of access constraints (β = -.22, t = -2.64, p = .008). The beta values in all the significant predictions indicated that the more marginal the respondents, the higher their level of leisure constraints.

Capacity of Marginality in Predicting Perception of Leisure Constraints The marginality indices (education level, financial status) did not predict respondents’ perceptions of interpersonal constraints, and physiological constraints. However marginality indices significantly predicted perceptions of sociocultural constraints (R2 change = .09, F change = 6.10, p = .003, df = 2, 123), access constraints (R2 change = .16, F change = 11.45, p = .000, df = 2, 123), affective constraints (R2 change = .07, F change = 4.94, p = .009, df = 2, 123), and resources constraint (R2 change = .05, F change =

Both acculturation and marginality explained perception of certain leisure constraints of this sample of Australian Chinese immigrants. Chinese immigrants who were more acculturated tended to have a lower level of sociocultural constraints, interpersonal constraints, and access constraints, irrespective of their level of education and the financial status. Moreover, Chinese immigrants who were less marginal had a lower level of access constraints and affective constraints, irrespective of their acculturation levels.

Immigrants’ perception of sociocultural constraints – feeling uncomfortable and inse-

Length of Residence and Perception of Leisure Constraints The correlation between respondents’ length of residence in Australia and their perception of leisure constraints were insignificant for all the constraint dimensions (p > .05).

Conclusions and Discussions

39

Eva H. Tsai

cure in public and social settings, or experiencing difficulties in communicating and interacting with other leisure participants – might be partly explained by cultural differences such as having different languages and cultural orientations. Previous studies have suggested that immigrants preferred to recreate with people of similar culture and tended to have an ethnically enclosed social network (Clayworth, 1986; Rosenthal & Feldman, 1990); Carr & Williams, 1993). This ethnic enclosure probably can provide immigrants with an opportunity to avoid cultural and racial pressures, and thus minimise the experiencing of sociocultural constraints. However, this ethnic enclosure can limit immigrants’ choice of leisure companions; and thus increases their susceptibility to interpersonal constraints – difficulty in finding leisure companions – as in the case of the less acculturated Chinese immigrants in the current study.

The fact that both acculturation and marginality impacted on Chinese immigrants’ perception of access constraints – difficulty in accessing leisure information and opportunities – could be attributed partly to institutional discrimination. Given that economic rationalism has become a dominant ideology in Australia, ethnic minorities were liable to be disadvantaged in leisure resources allocation. Leisure provisions and marketing in Australia have largely targeted the dominant cultural majority and have been delivered in the dominant language, English. Therefore, it was likely that those less acculturated immigrants who have different cultural orientations, in particular those who have lower language adaptation, would experience greater difficulties in understanding the leisure information and gaining access to the mainstream leisure opportunities. Similarly, institutional discrimination, such as lack of consideration for the financially disadvantaged could hinder these people’s access to leisure opportunities.

The reason that marginality, especially education, contributed to Chinese immigrants’ perception of affective constraints – finding existing leisure opportunities unattractive – is somewhat speculative. Possibly,

40

Chinese immigrants who were more educated tended to be more receptive to a broader range of leisure opportunities. Perhaps education increased individuals’ leisure efficacy and confidence, and thus their receptiveness in a broader range of leisure opportunities. Nevertheless, having a longer stay in Australia had not helped in alleviating any of the leisure constraints of the Chinese immigrants.

In summary, acculturation seemed to contribute to the reduction of some of the cultural and migration related leisure constraints. The more acculturated the immigrants, the less likely that they felt uncomfortable and insecure in the public and social leisure settings, and the easier it was for them to find leisure companions, as well as to gain access to the leisure opportunities. In addition, being more educated could be a leisure advantage to immigrants because it might increase their receptiveness to a broader range of leisure opportunities.

In the current study, convenience sampling was used because there was no effective sampling frame for the Chinese immigrants. Thus, the sample might not have been representative of the Chinese immigrant population. Therefore, the findings should not be used for generalization purposes. However, it is believed that the study provides some understanding of the acculturation-marginality constraint mechanisms and stimulate research interest and in the area.

Apparently, cultural, racial, and institutional factors operate in a complex manner, both independently and possibly interactively to influence immigrants’ perception of leisure constraints. The current study did not explicitly examine the influences of racial and institutional discrimination on immigrants’ perception of leisure constraints, although some aspects of racial and institutional discrimination were measured in various constraints factors, such as in sociocultural constraint, and access constraints. In future research, an examination of the ways in which the racial, institutional, marginality, and cultural factors intertwine to shape immigrants’ leisure behaviors in different constraint situations and different sub-cul-

The Influence of Acculturation on Perception of Leisure Constraints of Chinese Immigrants

tural contexts would help advance our understanding of the leisure behaviors of ethnic minorities.

With an increase in the diversity and proportion of our ethnic sub-populations, cultural sensitivity and awareness among people are becoming very important. Such sensitivity and awareness are required to foster inviting social environments in which people from diverse racial and cultural background recreate. Both the dominant cultural majority and the ethnic minorities need to have mutual understanding and acceptance of others’ cultures.

In regard to leisure provision and marketing, although it is important to target the dominant cultural majority, the leisure interests and needs of immigrants belonging to a minority culture also needed to be adequately catered for. Information about leisure opportunities is essential for further involvement in leisure activities. A lack of availability of understandable information would virtually block immigrants from further accessing to those leisure opportunities. To improve immigrants’ access to leisure opportunities, information needs to be disseminated in ways that immigrants could reach and in the forms that they could understand.

Our communities always contain people who are at different levels and stages of acculturation. Some are highly acculturated; some are less or are not acculturated. These people undergo a continue process of cultural change at different paces. To provide equitable leisure opportunities in multicultural societies, leisure service providers and professionals need to understand the leisure needs, leisure interests, and leisure constraints of their diverse populations. Provision of cross-cultural training for leisure program leaders and other leisure professionals might help improve their cultural sensitivity and understanding. Furthermore, availability of some ethno-specific leisure services is necessary to better cater for the special interests and needs of ethnic minorities, particularly for those who are at an early stage of acculturation and those who could not or do not want to become acculturated.

Acknowledgement I wish to thank Dr Denis Coleman of Griffith University for helping me in the preparation of this manuscript.

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✴ ✴ ✴ EVA H. TSAI Bachelor of Arts in Leisure Management (Hons.)

Ph. D. Candidate School of Leisure Studies Mt Gravatt Campus Griffith University Queensland 4111 Australia Tel: +61 7 3875 5945 Fax: +61 7 3875 5661 Email: E.Tsai@mailbox.gu.edu.au

WORLD LEISURE No. 4/2000

© Copyright by the authors

Community Sports and Recreation Students’ Knowledge and Stereotypes of Aging MIN-HAENG CHO, DONG-KUN KIM

KYUNG-HWAN KANG

Chungnam National University

Kongju National University

Abstract Objective: The purpose of this study was to find out how much knowledge South Korean University students would demonstrate with regard to older adults and to the normal processes of aging.

Methods: Participants (n=145) majoring in community sports and recreation from the four different universities responded to the questionnaires based on the American National Institute on Aging’s (NIA) quiz assessing aging and demographic trends, diet and medications, physical health, and mental health.

Results: The students responded relatively high percentage of correct answers in the areas of aging and demographic trends, diet and medication, and physical health. With regard to their knowledge of aging and intelligence, depression, and personality, the students showed incorrect responses.

Discussion: The results indicate that there exists a need to provide the students with formal aging class to expand their scopes of knowledge and increase their understanding to better ser ve aging society.

Keywords: Stereotypes of aging, Elderly people, Physical activity Community Sports and Recreation Students’ Knowledge and Stereotypes of Aging

✴ ✴ ✴ I. Introduction The need to develop effective lifestyle interventions that have the potential to improve the quality of life for older people is especially apparent when one considers the growing population of older adults in South Korea. Whereas elderly people who are 65 years of age or over constituted a mere 4 % of the South Korean population in 1960, they now represent almost 7 %.

That is, from 1960 to 1998, the number of older people 65 years of age and over in South Korea has risen from 726,000 to 2.9 million (South Korean National Statistics Office, 1998). Available evidence strongly suggests that this growth rate will continue at a dramatic pace. The South Korean National Statistics Office (1998) cur-

rently predicts that between 2010 and 2030, when the post-Korean war baby boom generation enters their elderly years, there will be more than 10 million elderly South Koreans. This will mean that the percentage of the overall population aged 65 and over will rise to almost 20 %.

Reductions in infant mortality and general morbidity rates have resulted in impressive increases in life expectancy that have contributed to the growth of the older population. According to the National Statistical Office (1995), life expectancy at birth rate for South Koreans was 52.4 years in 1960. Because of decreased mortality, primarily among the young, life expectancy has continued to increase dramatically over the past 30 years and is expected to increase some-

43

Min-Haeng Cho, Dong-Kun Kim, Kyung-Hwan Kang

what more gradually in the future. From 1960 to 1995, life expectancy at birth for men increased from 51.1 to 69.6 years; for women, from 53.7 years to 77.4 years (National Statistical Office, 1995). There is little doubt that such a dramatic increase in the number of elderly people will have far-reaching consequences for all members of South Korean society.

The unprecedented increase in the older adult population in South Korea has attracted the interest of both researchers and practitioners. More attention is being given to research and applied projects designed particularity for older adults. Although there has been increased attention given to research and applied projects focusing on physical activity for older adults (Kim, 1994; Lee & Jang, 1996; Lee, 1994; Lee, Oh, & Chung, 1995; Lee, 1996; Min, 1997), research into the medical and social service providers’ attitude toward elderly people has not received any attention in the literature. There is evidence that the attitude of health care professionals toward elderly people affects the quality of care they receive (Belgrave, Lavin, Breskaym, & Haug, 1982; Coccaro & Miles, 1984; Coe, Miller, & Prendergast, 1982). Wolliscroft et al.

(1984) found that greater knowledge of the aged and aging process is associated with a more positive attitude toward elderly people.

From this research authors could conclude that if negative stereotypes of the elderly people are to be countered, students must receive an appropriate knowledge base. Students’ degree of perceiving of the attitude toward elderly people and their present level of understanding of the aging process are critical factors to consider when planning curricular changes. After all, these students will become South Korea’s future physical fitness leaders, policy makers, and service providers. It is important that their attitudes and behaviors with regard to the rapidly growing older South Korean population are based on objective knowledge and experience, and not on stereotypical or out-dated misconceptions.

An exhaustive search of the extant literature indicated that no research studies had been conducted on the knowledge of aging among college students majoring in community sports and recreation. The purpose of this study was to find out just how much knowledge these students would demonstrate with regard to older adults and to the normal processes of aging.

44

II. Method Subjects The population for this preliminary study consisted of 145 senior students majoring in community sports and recreation from the four different universities in Taejon, South Korea. 145 senior students in the total population, 50 from C university, 43 from M university, 35 from H university, and 17 from T university participated in this study.

The participants ranged in age from 23 to 28, with a mean of 24.29 years (SD = 1.40).

Instrument A survey questionnaire consisting of true or false response items was developed based on the American National Institute on Aging’s (NIA) quiz, “What Is Your Aging I.Q. ?” (U.S. Government, 1991). The “What Is Your Aging I.Q.?” quiz was originally developed as a means of examining societal stereotypes about aging. The questionnaire was translated into Korean and was reviewed by two bilingual experts of Korean literature to ensure translation correctness and comprehension. It was also discussed with three experts in the field of gerontology to ensure relevance, understanding and face validity. The recognized experts suggested that three questions out of the original twenty questions from the National Institution on Aging quiz were eliminated because they were judged to be either culturally inappropriate or not easily comprehensible to South Korean students. In addition to the 17 questions, students were asked to provide the following demographic information: (a) gender, (b) school, (c) urban or rural household, and (d) experience living with grandparent(s) as part of family household or no experience living with grandparent(s) as part of family household.

Procedures Copies of the survey questionnaires were distributed to each of the 145 senior students majoring in community sports and recreation from the four different universities in Taejon, South Korea.

In order to increase the rate of response to the questionnaire, letters were mailed to the coordinators of each department at the four different universities. All coordinators responded their willingness to help their students to participate in this questionnaire. Authors set dates with the professors for meetings with senior students at the four different universities. The questionnaires were dis-

Community Sports and Recreation Students’ Knowledge and Stereotypes of Aging

tributed, monitored, and collected by authors during normally scheduled classes.

III. Results Data analysis was based on 145 returns for a response rate of 100 %. Of those who responded to the questionnaire, 73.8 % (N=107) were male and 26.2 % (N=38) were female. Of those completing one of the 145 usable surveys, 50 respondents (34.5 %) were C university students, 43 (29.7 %) were M university students, 35 (24.1 %) were H university students, and 17 (11.7 %) were T university students. Most, 103 (71 %), reported that they lived in an urban household and 42 (29 %) a rural household.

More than half (62.1 %) indicated that they had experience living with grandparent(s) as part of their family household and 55 (37.9 %) reported that they had no such experience. Chi-square tests were calculated for the responses to each of the 17 questions based on the four demographic variables. No significant differences were found at the p < .05 level. A summar y of the demographic data can be found in Table 1.

In order to facilitate the analysis of the Aging I. Q. responses, the 17 true-false items were divided into four categories: aging and demographic trends; aging, diet and medications; aging and physical health; aging and mental health. With regard to aging and demographic trends, 92.4 % of the sample of South Korean undergraduates correctly answered “true” in response to the statement, “The numbers of older people in the total population are growing.”

Table 1. Description of Sample Item

Number (N) Percentage (%)

Gender Male Female University C H M T Household Urban Rural Experience Living With Grandparent(s) As part of Family Household Yes No

107 38

73.8 26.2

50 43 35 17

34.5 29.7 24.1 11.7

103 42

71.0 29.0

90 55

62.1 37.9

The knowledge of these undergraduate community sports and recreation majors was also encouraging with respect to the categories of aging, diet and medications. A total of 92.4 % responded correctly with “false” to the statement, “Only children need to be concerned about calcium for strong bones and teeth.” A slightly lower percent (66.2 %) responded correctly with “true” to the statement, “Older people on the average take more medications than younger people.”

With regard to aging and physical health, most of these students showed correct responses. In response to the statement, “Older people should stop exercising and rest,” a total of 89 % responded correctly with “false.” An equally strong 92.4 % correctly answered “true” to the statement, “Extremes of heat and cold can be particularly dangerous to old people.”

However, the percentage of students responding correctly with “false” was slightly lower (62.8 %) for the statement, “If a person ahs been smoking for 30 or 40 years, it does no good to quit,” and 52.4 % for the statement, “Deaths from stroke and heart disease are declining.”

The one category where the South Korean undergraduate students seemed to have had the most difficulty identifying the correct responses was the category of aging and mental health.

Although a relatively high percentage correctly answered “false” to the statement, “Everyone becomes senile sooner or later, if he or she lives long enough” (86.2 %) and “Mental confusion is an inevitable, incurable consequence of aging” (71 %), only 41.4 % correctly answered “false” to the statement, “Intelligence declines with age.” Also, a total of 91.7 % incorrectly answered “true” to the statement, “Depression is a serious problem for older people,” and 75.2 % incorrectly answered “true” to the statement, “Personality changes with age, just like hair color and skin texture.” The results of data surveyed can be seen in Table 2.

IV. Discussion As South Korea begins to experience the dramatic effects of an increasing older population, it is important to monitor aging attitudes and knowledge of normal aging processes among senior students majoring in community sports and recreation. South Korea’s older adults will benefit most when decisions affecting their wellbeing are based on objective, scientific knowledge and not on stereotypical, out-dated mis-

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Min-Haeng Cho, Dong-Kun Kim, Kyung-Hwan Kang

Table 2. Response Percentages for Each of the 17 Aging I. Q. Items Question

% True

Aging and demographic trends: The numbers of older people in the total population are Growing.

92.4* More men than women survive to old age.

13.1 Aging, diet and medication: As you grow older, you need more vitamins and minerals to stay healthy.

77.9* Only children need to be concerned about calcium for strong bones and teeth.

7.6 Older people on the average take more medications than younger people.

66.2* Aging and physical health: Older people should stop exercising and rest.

11 Sight declines with aging.

84.8* The extremes of heat and cold can be particularly dangerous to old people.

92.4* Many older people are hurt in accidents that could have been prevented.

88.3* Sexual urges and activity normally cease around 55-60.

29 If a person has been smoking for 30 or 40 years, it does no good to quit.

37.2 Deaths from stroke and heart disease are declining.

47.6 Aging and mental health: Everyone becomes senile sooner or later, if she/he lives long enough.

13.8 Mental confusion is an inevitable, incurable consequence of old age.

29 Intelligence declines with age.

58.6 Depression is a serious problem for older people.

91.7 Personality changes with age, just like hair color and skin texture.

75.2

% False

7.6 86.9*

22.1

92.4*

33.8

89* 15.2

7.6

11.7 71*

62.8* 52.4*

86.2*

71* 41.4* 8.3*

24.8*

(* indicates correct response)

conceptions. The dramatic changes occurring in South Korea’s older population presage a time of unprecedented challenges for the nation’s physical fitness leader, policy makers, and service providers. The results of this limited prelimi-

46

nary study would seem to indicate that, at least among this particular sample of South Korean undergraduates majoring in community sports and recreation, there is cause for some optimism with regard to their overall knowledge of aging.

A possible explanation for these students’ relatively high percentage of correct responses in the areas of aging and demographic trends, diet and medications, and physical health may be related to the fact that 62.1 % of the students indicated that they had experience living with grandparent(s) as part of their family household.

Traditionally, the South Korean culture has been very family-centered, with the responsibility for taking in and taking care of one’s elders an unquestioned familial duty. However, even this tradition may be changing. Rapid urbanization and modernization has resulted in the recent construction of large nuclear-family style apartment complexes. Changes in traditional extended-family living arrangements have been accompanied by changes in attitudes. In a survey conducted by the Institute of Korean Social Welfare (1998), 73.7 % of the older adults surveyed indicated that they preferred not to be supported by or dependent upon their children in their older years.

In the category of aging and physical health, there is at least one response that needs further investigation. Only 52.4 % of the students responded correctly with “false” to the statement, “Death from stroke and heart diseases are declining.” According to the South Korean National Statistics Office (1998), the death rate of older adults from stroke and heart disease has been consistently increasing. Among South Koreans aged 60 years and older, the death rate from stroke and heart disease has increased from 9.0 % in 1989 to 16.3 % in 1998. The fact that only a little over half of the students were aware of this important health trend, combined with the 37.2 % incorrect response rate regarding the benefits of quitting the habit of smoking, may indicate that many students are not up-todate with respect to aging and current health problems, trends, and scientific research in cardiovascular and pulmonary diseases.

Perhaps the most important findings of this preliminary study are that so many of the students exhibited stereotypical misconceptions in the category of aging and mental health. A high number of incorrect responses to the questions on aging and intelligence, depression, and personality may come, in part, from students’ lack of objective

Community Sports and Recreation Students’ Knowledge and Stereotypes of Aging

knowledge of normal cognitive and psychological aging processes. In this research there is no specific classroom instruction dealing with physical activity and aging at the four different universities.

Increasing in knowledge of aging and raising the level of positive attitude toward elderly people come only through more direct intervention which means offering formal aging class to the students.

Clearly there is an urgent need to incorporate physical activity and aging into physical fitness-related education process.

In summary, while the students showed the correct responses in the areas of the aging and demographic trends, diet and medication, and physical health, a high number of the students responded incorrectly to the questions regarding the aging and mental health. These results suggest that if the students wish to improve students’ knowledge about aging process and make students understand the special needs of elderly people, the curriculum should include formal classroom instruction in the psychological, social, and physiological aspects of aging and physical activity with elderly people. As physical fitness leaders, policy makers, or social workers in the future who work with elderly people, from physically frail to physically robust, there exists a need to provide those students with formal aging class to expand their scopes of knowledge and increase their understanding to better serve aging society.

REFERENCES American College of Sports Medicine. (1995). Guidelines for exercise testing and prescription . (5th ed.). Baltimore: Williams & Wilkins.

Belgrave, L. L., Lavin, B., Breskaym N., & Haug, M. R. (1982). Stereotyping of the aged by medical students.

Gerontology and Geriatrics Education, 3, 37-44.

Binder, E. F., Brown, M., Craft, S., Schechtman, K. B., & Birge, S. J. (1994). Effects of a group exercise program on risk factors for falls in frail older adults. Journal of Aging and Physical Activity, 2, 25-37.

Bortz, W. M. (1992). Disuse and aging. Journal of the American Medical Association , 248, 1203-1208.

Brown, R. (1992). Physical activity, aging, and psychological well-being: An overview of the research. Canadian Journal of Sport Sciences , 63, 302-310.

Coccaro, E. F., & Miles, A. M. (1984). The attitudinal impact of training in gerontology/geriatrics in medical school: A review of the literature and perspective. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society , 32, 762-768.

Coe, R. M., Miller, D. K., & Prendergast, J. M.(1982).

Faculty resources for teaching geriatric medicine. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society , 30, 63-66.

Harper, S. (1999). Building an intergenerational activity program for older adults. Journal of Physical Education , Recreation & Dance, 70(2), 68-70.

Institute of Korean Social Welfare. (1998). A study of cross-national elderly life and Welfare . Seoul. Institute of Korean Social Welfare.

Kim, S. H. (1994). The effect of physical activity on the anxiety and depression of elderly people. Journal of Sports and Leisure Studies , 3, 129-138.

Lee, H. B., & Jang, I. S. (1996). A basic study of recreation programs for elderly people. Journal of Sport and Leisure Studies, 5, 231-239.

Lee, H. S. (1994). A study on the effect of leisure activity and the satisfaction of elders . Unpublished thesis, Kookmin University, Seoul.

Lee, J. S., Oh, I. Y., & Chung, I. K. (1995). The effect of leisure program participation on the life satisfaction of elders. Journal of Sport and Leisure, 4, 163-174.

Lee, S. C. (1996). The relationship between participation in sport for all activities and life satisfaction of Korean elderly. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, Seoul National University, Seoul.

Min, C. K. (1997). Development of program of improving health related fitness in the elderly . Unpublished doctoral dissertation, Korean National University of Physical Education, Seoul.

Schilke, J. M. (1991). Slowing the aging process with physical activity. Journal of Gerontological Nursing , 17(6), 4-8.

South Korean National Statistics Office. (1998). Future population estimation by state and city (1970-2020).

South Korea, Seoul: National Statistics Office.

U. S. Government. (1991). Lifelong learning for an aging society. Washington, DC: United States Senate Special Committee on Aging (Serial No. 102- J).

U.S. Department of Health and Human Ser vices.

(1996). Physical activity and health: A report of the Surgeon General . Atlanta, GA: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Wankel, L. M. (1994). Health and leisure: Inextricably linked. Journal of Physical Education, Recreation & Dance, 65(4), 28-31.

World Health Organization. (1997). The Heidelberg guidelines for promoting physical activity among older persons. Journal of Aging and Physical Activity , 5(1), 2-8.

Woolliscroft, J., O., Calhoun, J. G., Maxim, B. R., & Wolf, F. M. (1984). Medical education to facilities for the elderly. Journal of the American Medical Association , 252, 3382-3385.

✴ ✴ ✴ MIN-HAENG CHO, Ph.D., Department of Physical Education, Chungnam National University DONG-KUN KIM, Ph. D., Department of Community Sports and Recreation, Chungnam National University KYUNG-HWAN KANG, Ph. D., Department of Physical Education, Kongju National University Mailing address: Min-Haeng Cho 220 Kung-Dong Yuseong-Ku, Taejon, South Korea Phone Number: (042) 821-6447 E-mail address: heoney@cnu.ac.kr

47

WORLD LEISURE No. 4/2000

© Copyright by the authors

Tourist evaluation of Olu Deniz beach (Turkey) using Contingent Valuation and Travel Cost approaches F. BRIAN BLAKEMORE

ALLAN T. WILLIAMS

University of Glamorgan, Pontypridd, Wales, UK

Bath Spa University, UK

ERDAL OZHAN Middle East Technical University, Ankara, Turkey

Abstract The perceptions of, reasons for use and a valuation of Olu Deniz beach, Turkey, were determined from a questionnaire survey. Results for all three characteristics were found to give good agreement with previous studies. Seventy four percent of the respondents were British, 20 percent Turkish and the rest were of European extraction. The Travel Cost incurred for foreign tourists (mainly British) was found to be £281 per trip or around £4.7 million p.a. for the annual use of the beach.

The Consumer Surplus calculated from this Travel Cost data is £0.63 per visit to the beach. The amount tourists were willing to pay to improve the quality of their experience was £0.94 per beach visit or £0.12 million p.a. for this beach, using the Contingent Valuation Method. Beach users preferred to pay on a per visit basis at the beach visited. This may expose a belief held by those sampled, that any increased general taxation revenue supposedly raised for environmental improvements would not actually be spent on such activities. The beach has restricted access, which would facilitate such a payment method, but Turkish law would need to be amended to allow charging those using the beach. This payment would not pose a problem for tourists.

Keywords: beach, contingent valuation, travel cost, consumer surplus, willingness to pay, Turkey. ✴ ✴ ✴

Introduction There has been a large increase in the number of British and other European visitors to Turkey and Turkish beaches over the last fifteen years: from 1.7 to 8.7 million tourists per annum which has been mirrored by similar increases in tourism beds available and tourism development (Anon 1999).

Given that there is no monetary cost in using the public beaches in Turkey, economic theory suggests that there is a tendency to over use the services of this natural environment. This effect has also been witnessed in the United Kingdom

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where intensive usage of beaches and coastal zones in general, following a rapid increase in leisure activity, has resulted in some degree of degradation requiring regulation of the man-environment interaction via sound management policies (Williams and Sothern 1986). These policies need to be implemented in such a way as to take account of public opinion and concerns. Furthermore, such implementation implies an economic cost, some of which may be recoverable from the users of the hitherto free facility. This paper will explore this potential fund raising opportunity.

Tourist evaluation of Olu Deniz beach (Turkey) using Contingent Valuation and Travel Cost approaches

The aim of this study is to assess the value that people place on the beach in economic terms, specifically the survey ascertained the amount respondents were willing to pay to maintain and or improve Olu Deniz beach in Turkey at its perceived present condition. Socio-economics is increasingly being seen as the key forcing function with regard to coastal issues. Economic evaluation such as the ones enumerated below have a large role to play in Integrated Coastal Management and the area is one where little evidence of coherent world-wide research exists.

Theory: Total expenditure by tourists does not reflect the value of a beach, neither does it provide a basis for efficient resource allocation (Loomis et al., 1985). The contingent valuation method (CVM) has been used extensively to estimate values for environmental amenities in general and other non-market goods and services. However, its application to beach users is ver y limited. â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;CVM is potentially capable of directly measuring a broad range of economic benefits for a wide range of goods, including those not yet supplied in a manner fully consistent with economic theoryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; (Mitchell and Carson 1989: 295). It is an approach to commodity valuation that relies upon individual responses to contingent circumstances in an artificial market (Stoll 1983). Willingness To Pay (WTP) can be considered to be a form of Consumer Surplus i.e. the remainder of the gross WTP value after total incurred expenditure has been subtracted. It is the surplus value of a good or service over and above the incurred expenditure. Consumer Surplus has a ver y important role in economics with regard to the valuation and optimum resource allocation of goods. They have been especially important where the environment has been threatened by man made disasters, e.g. the Exxon Valdez oil spill (Randall 1993).

A significant feature of CVM has been its use to determine the different kinds of valuation that people place on environmental goods, in particular existence values. With such values it is clear that there are ethical/moral considerations involved, Stevens et al., (1991) presented standard CVM results for habitat restoration for wild species in New England, USA. Their study showed that the existence value (a non-use value) was the prime factor (79%) in supporting

habitat restoration for salmon. They also experienced high levels of protest bids (zero WTP ) accompanied with comments, such as, the government should pay or one cannot value life in monetary terms. They concluded that to give a choice between goods (Income) and a moral principle was likely to produce ambiguity. One of the major problems with CVM is that of differing perceptions of the questions asked by sur veyors and answered by respondents. Such a problem might well lead to confusion and ambivalence in the results as compared to other techniques, accuracy in CVM can be between plus/minus sixty percent (Pearce et al., 1989). Despite these problems CVM remains a popular method of valuing environmental goods, both in Europe and in the USA where the Environmental Protection Agency list it as one of four methods it insists upon when valuing the environment (US EPA, 1983). In an analysis of what questions are being answered in CVM questionnaires Hoehn and Randall (1987), concluded that their models 4 and 5 are consistent with the CVM formats used in many empirical applications. In model 4, the respondent believes that: (1) the proposed policy will be implemented if reported aggregate benefits are greater than the costs and (2) each citizen pays in proportion to their stated valuation. In model 5 the respondent believes that: (1) the policy will be implemented if a majority approve it and (2) each citizen votes based upon a cost specified in the questionnaire. Within the context of the survey on Olu Deniz we are conforming to model 4. For item (1) we are looking at situation where the cost of implementation is low i.e. collecting a fee, and for item (2) the respondent is stating directly the amount they are prepared to pay for their use of the beach.

Eklof and Karlsson (1997) consider that nonresponse bias, due to a systematic relationship between the non-response and the explanatory variables, is of concern in WTP studies using a discrete choice (closed) format. Alvarez et al., (1996) discussed both non-response bias and sample selection bias in an open-ended format approach to WTP questions.

The effects of sample size on WTP were investigated using the Mote Carlo simulation method (Cooper 1994). Reducing the sample size from 1000 to 100 resulted in the calculated mean WTP increasing from $206.67 to $207.05.

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F. Brian Blakemore, Allan T. Williams, Erdal Ozhan

In this study the use of CVM is restricted to evaluation of use values and the response rate was nearly 100%, so most of the problems cited above are minimised or inappropriate.

The travel cost method is the longest established indirect revealed preference approach (Turner 1993). In the USA, this method has proved to be both consistent and to produce plausible differences in valuing different recreation sites. However, in the UK this method is no longer held in such esteem due to problems associated with visitors: r moving close to a recreational site in order to enjoy it more often r visiting more than one site during a single outing r enjoying their travel time to the site.

These objections are not acute in this study as there is little evidence of Britons moving to live permanently in Turkey, Most respondents in the survey spent a large part of their day on the beach and the travel time to the beach is not used in this paper.

In essence the travel cost method builds up a valuation from two components: a). The actual costs incurred in visiting the site. b). The value to the visitors of their time travelling to the site. This represents a lost opportunity to spend this time in some other pleasurable way. The value put on the travel time has been subject to much debate (Turner 1993). In this paper a value of 30% of the hourly wage is used as the opportunity cost of time. This is the figure generally applied and approximates to net pay after tax, National Insurance, etc. divided by two. There is roughly twice the number of leisure hours to working hours for many workers.

Furthermore, the travel cost method allows the calculation of consumer surplus.

The Beach: Olu Deniz consists of a long spit (2-3km) and the beach is composed of cobble sized materials. Its width is of the order of 100-200m. and it is located some 20 minutes drive from the large tourist resort town of Marmaris on the Mediterranean coast. The southern edge faces the sea; the northern side embraces a lagoon, which can reach a depth of 10m. Access is well controlled by two entrance points across the beach width so collection of an entrance fee would be an easy matter. Serried ranks of sun loungers rim the

50

beach. Morgan and Williams (1998) have pointed out that conventional measures of beach qualities appear to be very limited covering only 15 out of 50 aspects that are important to users. Furthermore, the current measures used and weightings do not relate to the importance placed upon them by the users. Morgan and Williams (1998) and Morgan et al., (1995) carried out a pilot study of beach user opinions and calculated their own beach rating for five Turkish beaches. These included Olu Deniz, which was found to give the highest rating (87 %) based upon weighted values for 47 aspects.

Their study (n = 245) evaluated beach users perceptions and demographics. It was noted that the majority of beach users in their study were also British (59%) and so in the main the perceptions and demographics were those of British tourists. Further surveys on beach aesthetics by Williams et al., (2000), have shown that out of 28 tourist beaches located between Izmir and Antalya investigated for an aesthetics study of Turkish beaches, this beach rated Number 3 and the adjacent lagoon number 4. Based on an aesthetic percentage rating scale of physical, biological and anthropogenic parameters, the scores for the beach and lagoon respectively were 86% and 85% respectively compared with 89% for the top Turkish beaches (Dalyan and Cleopatraâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s beach on Sedir island).

As stated the beach is one that is overwhelmingly geared to foreign tourists especially British visitors, and a peak of some 15,000 arrive in nearby Marmaris by sea during August. This can be compared to over 210,000 that arrive by air at Dalaman, the nearest airport, for the same month (BST, 1998). Not all of the latter will stay at Olu Deniz, but it is estimated that a sizeable proportion will spend at least one day there (Surucu, pers. comm. ). Certainly, all visitors who stay at Marmaris will swim and sunbathe several times at this beach. The season lasts from June to October and over a year nearly 1 million people will fly into Dalaman whilst 75,000 arrive at Marmaris by boat. Therefore Olu Deniz is probably the most popular tourist beach in Turkey and is an ideal one on which to carry out the research presented in this paper.

Method: Data from 90 beach users was gained by means of a questionnaire survey carried out midweek in August 1998 and midweek in Au-

Tourist evaluation of Olu Deniz beach (Turkey) using Contingent Valuation and Travel Cost approaches

gust 1999, i.e., in high season and with possibly less indigenous use than at weekends. The survey was conducted in situ on Olu Deniz beach.

Only those enjoying the beach rather than the sea were interviewed, as previous surveys by the authors they have identified ver y low response rates from those in the sea (Blakemore and Williams, 1998). The survey was conducted using a pseudo-random selection of respondents. The spit was divided up into several segments along its length and an interviewer was assigned to each segment. The interviewer made a zig-zag path through the sun-loungers stopping at every other group of people, the nearest adult was selected from within the group. The rejection rate from this approach was very low (below 1%).

No price was indicated as a guide on the question as to what would be a reasonable charge, so that respondent would not be influenced in any way, and would not be subject to starting point bias as suggested by Knetsch (1993). This is known as an open format approach. Blakemore and Williams (1998) found the starting bias from using a closed format approach was a minus figure of £1.01. In the open format approach some users were prepared to pay more than the highest option in the closed format approach, thus, reducing the apparent willingness to pay from £1.64 to £0.63.

Braithwaite (pers. comm.) found average WTP values for maintaining the beaches of Barbados, of $26 and $66 for open and closed questionnaires respectively.

Results: Use of the Beach: The majority of respondents visited the beach at Olu Deniz for recreation (51%), which was followed by open space and scenery (38%) and wildlife (11%). The majority (77%) visited Olu Deniz beach frequently during the week and stayed between 1-4 hours or all day for each visit. The reasons for using the beach at Olu Deniz are very similar to those found in the survey of Blakemore and Williams (1998) i.e. swimming and sunbathing. The frequency and duration of visits to the beach are similar to those found by Morgan et al.(1995) in a study of 5 Turkish beaches including Olu Deniz.

Perceptions of the beach: The majority of people surveyed at Olu Deniz stated that litter was the most disliked aspect of the beach (63%), water quality (40%) and dogs’ mess (44%) also ranked relatively highly.

The survey showed that 57% of the respondents would like to see the beach improved. Their perceptions as to what was most needed to improve the beaches were also similar to the survey of Blakemore and Williams (1998), which also found litter (36%), dogs’ mess (31%) and water quality (20%) to be the three most disliked aspects of the beach.

Demographic aspects: The majority of the respondents in both the 1998 and 1999 sur veys were from Britain (73.3% and 73.8% respectively), the only other significant nation represented was Turkey (20% and 21.3%). These very similar figures for both years suggest that this is a reasonable breakdown to use for the beach population.

Participants in the survey had a fairly wide spread of income levels, however, over one third declined to reveal their income. Those not declaring their income levels were predominantly professional people. Thus, the average value reported understates the true average of the respondents. Male respondents formed 50% of the sample population and 97% of the sample were between eighteen and sixty five years of age.

The respondents’ average annual earnings were found to be £16,500. Based upon a 37 hour working week and 47 working weeks a year this represents a wage rate of £ 9.50 per hour.

The average UK earnings for males and females are £21,044 and £15,350 respectively (Hinde, 1998 ). Using 50:50 weightings to these values gives a figure of £18,197, which is above the average found in the survey, for the reasons explained above.

Willingness to pay: The majority of respondents (88%) were willing to pay for maintenance and or improvements, the mean value that respondents in the Olu Deniz survey were prepared to pay being £0.94. This is in accord with findings found elsewhere on Turkish beaches.

For example, Unal and Williams, (1999) found that at Cesme peninsula beaches near Izmir, the average WTP was £0.89, with the preferred mode of payment being honesty boxes. In the Olu Deniz surveys there is a significant range of willingness to pay, from £0.00 to £3.50 per adult visit. The zero values for WTP were taken to be a true economic valuation rather than a protest vote. The respondents had spent a considerable amount of money in getting to the beach and had paid for the hire of the sun-loungers. The

51

F. Brian Blakemore, Allan T. Williams, Erdal Ozhan

latter seemed to be taken to represent paying for beach use and several comments, such as, “we have already paid to use the beach”, were made by these respondents. The higher end of the WTP values was also taken to be meaningful and rational as they represented both an exceedingly small fraction of income levels and were less than the likely expenditure on drinks whilst on the beach. The distribution of these responses (Olu Deniz 1998&99) is shown in Figure 1.

Fig 2. Willingness To Pay and earnings

Fig 1. Beach users valuation of Willingness To Pay

The preferred mode of payment was found to be an entrance fee (74%) with little support for parking fees (8%), honesty boxes (11%) or taxation (7%). This is also consistent with the views of the respondents in the Blakemore and Williams (1998) survey. The response may illustrate a basic human desire to pay for what one uses when one uses it or a deep rooted distrust of government systems i.e. will the tax actually be spent on improving the beach? The relationship between the amount the respondent was willing to pay and their annual income is shown in Figure 2. This shows that the WTP is independent of the respondent’s level of income. Blakemore and Williams (1998) also found this independence.

The mean value for WTP (£0.94) gives a contingent valuation of £0.12 million per annum for Olu Deniz beach .The contingent valuation method attempts to show the extra amount the visitors are prepared to pay to maintain and

52

improve their beach experience, i.e. their individual Consumer Surplus for this experience.

Travel Cost Method: The travel cost is made up of two components the opportunity cost of travel time and the cost of travel itself. The opportunity cost of travel time is equal to the hourly wage x travel time x 0.30.

The survey showed that the short average time for travel from accommodation to the beach makes any opportunity cost of this time insignificant. However, most beach users were tourists who had spent a considerable amount of time travelling from their homes to the resort and this time can be valued and is significant.

The time taken to travel to the resort includes travel to and from an airport, waiting at the airports and time of flight. The average travel time to and from the UK for the British respondents (74% of the survey) was 20.6 hours. Respondents that had suffered severe delays influenced this figure.

The weighted average opportunity cost of time spent travelling was found to be £ 58.71 per adult per round trip or £49 per person given an average family of 2.4 people (Living in Britain, 1994).

The travel cost for travelling to and from the airport was £5 per family per trip or a cost of, circa, £2 per person per trip, based on travel by car.

The average Travel Cost of flight and transport to the resort as part of a package was £230, based on a survey of flight costs for the summer period. The average estimated cost of travel by the respondents was £213. Showing that they had a very keen awareness of the cost breakdown for their package costs.

An alternative methodology is to subtract non-travel costs from the package price, which gave a cost of £271 per person. This figure is

Tourist evaluation of Olu Deniz beach (Turkey) using Contingent Valuation and Travel Cost approaches

higher than the flight cost method as it includes some valuation of staying in accommodation, but it further confirms that the original figure is of the right order of magnitude.

The total travel cost valuation is found by adding the components together, which yielded a total Travel Cost of £281 per person per trip.

The number of visitors per annum to Olu Deniz beach is between 30,000 to 40,000 of which 80% are foreign. Based on our limited survey and on 2.4 people travelling together, this yields a total Travel Cost of £7.9 million per annum from foreign visitors. This assumes that the 5% of non-British foreign visitors have the same costs as the British visitors.

However, this total Travel Cost cannot all be attributed to enjoying the beach. Holiday makers also enjoy different cultures, different food and drink, nightlife, etc. The respondents attributed 60% of their total enjoyment of their holiday to using the beach. Thus, 60% of the Travel Cost and Consumer Surplus may be attributed to the beach itself. In a study of tourists visiting Africa on safari tours Brown Jr. (1993) found that 50% (mean and median) of the pleasure and enjoyment experienced was from seeing, photographing and learning about wildlife i.e., the main purposes of the holiday. The close proximity of this value justifies the use of the value found at Olu Deniz.

Thus the Travel Cost associated with the beach is of the order of £ 4.7 million per annum from foreign visitors.

Consumer Surplus: The travel cost data can be used to calculate the Consumer Surplus enjoyed by the tourists sampled on Olu Deniz beach. The most common holiday package was for a two-week stay including bed and breakfast.

The demand schedule: demand expressed as a fraction of those sampled using this form of package who had paid a particular price for the package, is shown, as the lower line in Figure 3.

It was found that there were two dominant prices for such packages, i.e., two data points on Figure 3 comprising, (16.7% of visitors who paid £317 and the remainder 83.3% who paid £300).

The straight line has an intercept at the vertical axis of £321.3. Pearson’s correlation coefficient for a straight line formed from two data points must be 1.0. However, this does not prove that there is in fact a linear relationship. Many studies have used a linear relationship between

Fig 3. Consumer Surplus from total Travel Costs and from package costs only

travel cost and demand for example: Bell 1986 and Brown 1993.

If each tourist could be charged the exact price they are prepared to pay for the package then the demand schedule would reflect this perfect market segmentation, e.g., one person is willing to pay nearly £321.3 for this package.

The triangular area below the demand schedule and above the actual price paid is the Consumer Surplus.

For the data based on two weeks bed & breakfast we have a Consumer Surplus comprised of the areas of two triangles: 0.167 x (£321.3 -317 ) x 0.5 + 0.833 x (£321.3 - 300 ) x 0.5 i.e., the Consumer Surplus = £9.23 per package Again, taking 60% of this value to represent the Consumer Surplus relating to beach use yields a value of £4.61 per 14-day stay. This equates to £0.63 per beach visit given the average number of visits to the beach per person per week was found to be 4.4. This value is close to the mean and second most frequent WTP (£0.65) found in this survey.

This calculation should be carried out using the total travel cost rather than the cost of the package. However, our questionnaire contained around 25 questions, without asking if the extra costs of travelling to and from airports and time spent travelling varied with the price respondents were willing to pay for their package. Therefore, in this study using an average value for these extra costs would not change the value of the Consumer Surplus calculated. This is because the area of the triangle would be the same as both lines comprising the triangle would be increased by the same amount. This is shown as the upper line in Figure 3.

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F. Brian Blakemore, Allan T. Williams, Erdal Ozhan

Discussion:

Conclusions:

The results of the survey only represents high season beach users who were enjoying the beach, rather than actively enjoying the sea.

Thus, more work needs to be carried out before an accurate value of WTP or consumer surplus can be calculated. None the less the results are consistent and do yield the likely order of magnitude for these measures.

The Willingness To Pay found in the study (£0.94) is roughly in line with the work of Bell and Leeworthy (1986) who found a WTP of $4.38 (£2.7) per day per visitor. They assumed that all daily expenditure was for beach uses i.e. that all enjoyment related to beach use.

Whereas we have ascertained that only 60% of tourist enjoyment is beach related on Olu Deniz beach.

In this study, the WTP (£0.94 per visit) is more than the CS (£0.63 per visit). Theoretically the WTP should only be greater than or equal to the CS, if the former includes non-use values such as, bequest value and existence value.

Also, in this survey the data set used to calculate the CS from the Travel Cost Method is ver y small and is therefore likely to be inaccurate. As the value found for the CS is of the same order of magnitude to that found for the WTP it does validate the WTP value found as being a meaningful response i.e. one that the tourists would genuinely be prepared to pay.

The preferred mode of payment was found to be the same in each survey; payment per visit collected on the beach. However, Turkish shore law states that the shore is “open to the benefit of all, equally and freely ” – so the local government cannot charge users for the right to go on them (Ozhan 1996:157). A possible modification might be to levy a tax for accommodation, hire of sun-loungers etc. In the USA, Florida passed a state law that stated that anyone staying the night in a guest-house, hotel, etc. pays up to 7% of the bill in tax and this is used to keep the beaches in good order. Findings from this study indicated that as long as any money collected is managed on a local basis and is spent on the beach concerned, tourists are very willing to pay for the beach upkeep. These facts provide ammunition for political change in keeping with devolvement of power to local authorities

The Contingent Valuation Methodology is an acceptable and rigorous method to explore beach users Willingness To Pay for and their valuation of their use of the beach.

The survey carried out at Olu Deniz was of restricted size and time of year, so that only approximate values may be presented and tentative conclusions may be postulated.

The surveys taken in Wales and Turkey gave similar results on factual data (number of trips to the beach, mode of transport etc.) and upon users perceptions on beaches (reasons for visiting the beach, users dislikes, etc.) and for the beach users WTP. Thus, the questionnaire used was found to give reproducible results.

The majority of people using Olu Deniz beach, would like to see the beach maintained and are willing to pay a mean fee per visit of £0.94 (Contingent Valuation Method). This would generate £0.12 million per annum for Olu Deniz beach maintenance/improvement.

The Consumer Surplus found from the travel cost data for respondents spending two weeks in bed and breakfast accommodation was £0.63 per beach visit. This is lower than their Willingness To Pay, but is of a roughly similar value.

Willingness To Pay and Consumer Surplus appear to be correct measures to use for resource allocation in this situation.

If a charge is to be paid to improve/maintain Olu Deniz beach the most popular method is via some form of fixed price per visit. Turkish coastal zone managers will need to champion change to Turkish law to allow the use of such a charge.

If a fee scheme were to be implemented, it would be necessary to address the concerns of the public in order to retain their support.

Hence, as the areas of greatest public concern have been shown to be litter, water quality and dogs’ mess coupled with a more general concern for protection of beaches from erosion and of special areas, these should receive high priority when allocating revenues gained from the scheme.

54

Acknowledgements: We would like to thank the participants of MEDCOAST, 1998 and 1999 who undertook the fieldwork at Olu Deniz beach. In addition, ATW and EO would like to thank The British Council, Ankara, Turkey, for the financial assistance that made this project possible.

Tourist evaluation of Olu Deniz beach (Turkey) using Contingent Valuation and Travel Cost approaches

REFERENCES Alvarez-Fario, B., Hanley N. and Wright R. 1996.

Sample selection bias and the estimation of bid curves in open-ended contingent valuation studies. Ecological Economics No 96/5, Department of Economics, University of Sterling.

Anon, 1999. Bulletin of Tourism Statistics. Ankara.

Ministry of Tourism.: pp84.

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Eklof, J. and Karlsson, S. 1997. Testing and correcting for sample selection bias in discrete choice contingent valuation studies. Working paper in economics and finance, No171, Stockholm School of Economics, May Hinde, S. 1998. Who earns what in nineties Britain.

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Beach user opinions and beach ratings: A pilot study on the Turkish Aegean Coast. Proceedings of the second international conference on the Mediterranean coastal environment .ed. E Ozhan : 273-83. Tarragona. Spain.

MEDCOAST, METU, Ankara, Turkey, Morgan., R & Williams, A.T., 1998. Beach Ratingswhat are they worth? Current Quality. edition 2. Jan., 2.

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Pearce, D., Markandya, A. & Barbier, E.B. 1989. Blueprint for a Green Economy. London Earthscan: 34-87.

Randall, A. 1993. Passive use and values and contingent valuation valid for damage assessment. Choices: 212-15.

Stoll, J. R. 1983. Recreational activities and non market valuation: the conceptualisation issue. Southern Journal of Agricultural Economics. 15(3): 119-25.

Stevens, T.H., Echeverria, J., Glass, R.J., Hager, T. & More, T.A. 1991. Measuring the Existence Value of Wildlife: What do CVM Estimates Really Show. Land Economics. 67: 390-400.

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8: 27-44.

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✴ ✴ ✴ F. BRIAN BLAKEMORE Senior lecturer Centre for Environmental Science and Technology School of Applied Sciences University of Glamorgan, Pontypridd, Wales, UK ALLAN T. WILLIAMS Professor Faculty of Applied Sciences Bath Spa University Newton Park, Bath, UK Air Terra Water Ltd Environmental Consultants 21 Beach Rd, Newton, Porthcawl, UK ERDAL OZHAN Professor Marine Engineering Research Centre Civil Engineering Dept, Middle East Technical University, Ankara, Turkey Contact F.B.Blakemore Tel 01443 482288 Fax 01443 482285 email fbblakem@glam.ac.uk

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WORLD LEISURE No. 4/2000

© Copyright by the authors

Achieving Consensus in Planning Recreation and Park Services DANIEL HOPE III, STEVEN DEMPSEY University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia

Abstract Planning recreation and park services often follows a traditional, or “expert,” model. Typically, one or more “experts” are brought in to recommend what needs to be done to meet the future needs of the community being served. Often the final product lies dormant on a shelf because the people who have to implement it and those it is intended to ser ve had little, or no, input. This article explores a process oriented planning model that uses the expertise of the people who will ultimately use the services and facilities provided by the local recreation and park department. It has been developed, and used, over the past ten years to reach decisions based on a partnership of shared community values, consensus, and a commitment to implementation.

Keywords: Recreation planning, strategic thinking, partnerships, collective decision making, decision conferencing, public participation, group consensus

✴ ✴ ✴ Introduction In times of limited resources and growing demand the ability to deliver quality recreation and park services depends on proper planning. Perhaps even more important for public agencies is the issue of who is involved in the planning process (Ewert, 1990). Such planning should represent what people want, project imaginatively what might be, and recognize realistically what is possible (Gold, 1983). Lankford and DeGraaf (1992) suggest that collective decision-making must become a key part of the planning process if a functional range of alternative futures are to be developed for leisure service delivery. This is even more critical if recreation and park agencies want to avoid being seen by their constituents as bureaucratic adversaries (Godbey 1991; Absher, et al., 1988). The successful planner seeks to share authorship and to facilitate the goals and interests of everyone who has a stake in the recreation and park agency (Lankford & DeGraaf, 1992; Fox, 1987; Van Gundy, 1984).

The successful manager must also be able to

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nurture, and utilize committees and ad hoc task forces to optimize the quality of decisions (Lippitt, 1980).

This article discusses a method for working with ad hoc community groups to develop a recreation and parks plan. It stresses the importance of actively involving stakeholders to build consensus about the plan (Lankford & DeGraaf, 1992) and, to achieve genuine commitment to implementation (Whorton, 1993). It begins with shared community values, emphasizes process, and produces policies, priorities, and action plans for improving recreation and park services.

Recreation and Park Planning and Decision-Making Planning recreation and park services to meet future community needs has followed a traditional approach often designed to accommodate the needs of the agency rather than those of the user (Gold, 1980). Typically, this has meant the production of master plans for physical development and the provision of programs,

Achieving Consensus in Planning Recreation and Park Services

rather than policy formulation (Getz, 1986).

Unfortunately, plans of this type were often unsuccessful because the people who had to implement them and those they were intended to serve did not help make the decisions on which they were based. When public policy was considered, the approach was one in which “experts” provided an objective assessment of the problem and recommended a course of action to correct it (Whorton, 1993).

Recreation managers must be aware of the forces which converge upon their agencies (Ewert, 1990). These are forces which today, more than ever before, make collective decision making a critical part of the planning process (Lankford & DeGraaf, 1992). Ewert (1990) pointed out that in an increasingly litigious and vocal society, collective decision making is an effective way to allow public input, to reduce conflict, and to generate higher quality decisions. In addition, towns and cities across America, whether urban or rural, are becoming more culturally diverse. If park and recreation managers are to continue to successfully provide quality leisure opportunities they must adopt new approaches to planning and decision making.

They must realize that who makes the decision and how the decision is made are as important to a community as the actual decision (Ewert, 1990). In other words, public leisure service agencies must reflect culture, not try to create it (Godbey, 1991).

In the past, failure to involve the people affected by public services in the planning process often led to failed programs; e.g., the “War on Poverty” in the 1960’s (Tindell, 1984). Many recreation and park plans prepared by outside experts suffered similar fates. While the value of planning was espoused by recreation and parks administrators, many plans still sat unused on bookshelves gathering dust (Yoder, et al. 1995).

Administrators did not involve the public in decision-making because they believed: 1) the public was not knowledgeable enough; 2) they would lose their authority, especially in technical matters; or 3) the process would be contentious and conflict ridden (Ewert, 1990). McKinney, et al. (1986) explained that the fate of recommendations of the expert planning team rested with the policies of current and future boards. This supports Getz’s (1986) belief that the best way to ensure permanent, forward-looking planning is to

focus on policies rather than on concrete development of plans. Policies give direction and commitment to actions, based on goals and knowledge of the system.

Gold (1983) described the traditional planning process as an attempt to reduce complexity by using arbitrary guidelines or standards, and one in which professionals have a tendency to superimpose their values on the process. Too often, the core of the planning team consists of professional consultants, academicians, graduate students, or a combination of these individuals. Citizens are asked to participate in only a token way, reviewing plans or proposals already prepared by “the experts.” Gold recommended a new approach to planning, one that attempted to encourage diversity and to use criteria sensitive to the particular needs of the population or planning area. The objective was still to provide effective spaces or services, but he said the professionals should only act as resource persons. Their role was to translate the values the process generates into alternatives that people, or their representatives, could consider.

In a comparison of expert and public opinions, Manning and Fraysier (1989) found them to be more complementary than conflicting and stressed the need for both in the planning process. They pointed out, however, that public policy must ultimately reflect public attitudes and values. Coalter (1990) and Godbey (1978, 1991) cautioned recreation and park managers and planners that the public harbored a general suspicion of them as bureaucratic, self-interested, and lacking accountability. For similar reasons, Fenwick (1989) called for a public centered, “culture of public service” requiring appointed and elected officials to concede some of their options in decision-making. People are the best judges of their own wants and desires and services should be demand-led and consumer oriented (Coalter, 1990). Local government should not be only a vehicle for delivering services, it should be a democratic institution which protects the rights of citizens and identifies need, or latent demand, for services by involving consumer/citizens in the decision-making (Coalter, 1990).

The process of decision-making, whether by an individual or a group, is complex. People are biased in their choices, limited in their capabilities to process information, an liable to use

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“rules of thumb” when they make decisions (Dirkin, 1983). A number of techniques for enhancing decision-making have been developed.

Some of the best known are Brainstorming, Brainwriting, Nominal Group, and Delphi. Ewert (1990) provides an excellent overview of many of these so we will not discuss these techniques here. It is important, however, to understand the decision environment.

General Characteristics of the Decision Environment Dirkin (1983) described people as being less than optimally rational when making decisions.

As decisions become complex and require the integration of large amounts of information, as in the case of developing a comprehensive recreation master plan, people become more biased in the choices they make. This bias arises when individual managers, faced with decisions of this type, compact data into more manageable units. One example is “anchoring,” or the over importance given to information received early in the decision process (Dirkin, 1983). It is easier to compare new evidence against the anchor than to constantly reformulate and weight new information being generated. This is one reason why a decision process that relies heavily on pre-packaged data may not be as effective as one based on stakeholder concerns and shared community values.

Improving the decision environment to ensure good thinking should be the goal of the recreation and parks manager. Bryson and Roering (1987) suggested that strategic planning tends to fuse planning and decision making, and that it is helpful to think of decision makers as strategic planners, and strategic planners as facilitators of the decision making process across all levels and functions in the community. Good strategic thinking, according to Miller and Mutter (1988), begins by listening to what an agency’s stakeholders have to say. This is done by externalizing the planning process and facilitating the goals and interests of the stakeholders. Fox (1987) and Van Gundy (1984) suggest that input from a variety of people, including management, workers and customers, will generally produce higher quality decisions. Moore and Feldt (1993) concur and find that decisions are of better quality and will be supported by a cross section of the community if all parties are in-

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volved early in the decision-making process.

These findings support Lippit’s (1980) earlier observation that one of the critical skills of the effective manager is the creation, nurturing, and utilization of committees and ad hoc task forces to optimize the quality of decision making. Active involvement of the people who use recreation and park services also builds a foundation for consensus about the plan and helps develop the support constituency necessar y for later action (Miller & Mutter, 1988).

It is important to understand the nature of committees or ad hoc task forces before attempting to involve them in the decision making process. Whorton (1993) gives three characteristics of the members of these groups. First, they have no common definition, or understanding, of the “community” itself or the organization for which the planning is being done. Second, the pluralistic nature of community subordinates shared values in favor of those values particular to a specific group – the special interest syndrome. Third, community groups are rarely aware of the possibility of consensus on problem identification or solution. People tend to fight on until their side wins, and this is a source of potential conflict.

The complexity of groups of people, whether a whole community or an ad hoc task force, leads to behavior patterns that can affect their ability to make decisions. Some of the more common barriers prevalent in the decision environment are: Hardening of the Categories: An individual’s or a group’s belief that their world view is unique and therefore the superior solution to the problem at hand. This creates an intolerance for alternative views and solutions (Whorton, 1993). It may occur because people, according to Dirkin (1983), tend to unconsciously compact “raw data” into manageable units when faced with an overabundance of information.

Trap of the Expert: Traditional approaches to recreation planning have relied solely upon the recommendations of “experts,” within the staff, or from outside of the organization. Often, plans of this type are never used, or are modified to meet elected policy makers political needs.

Not My Job: Too often, in attempts to solve community-wide problems people fail to discuss the big-picture and see the responsibility as belonging to some other person or organization.

Achieving Consensus in Planning Recreation and Park Services

Covet Thy Neighbors: This approach relies on borrowed ideas and strategies. It is easier to copy what another community has done than to develop strategies based on the unique assets and liabilities of one’s own community (Whorton, 1993).

Failure to Celebrate Diversity: The tendency to value the opinions and needs of a select few, rather than those of all individuals and groups in the community.

Linear Thinking: Basing decisions on a direct If “A,” then “B” mode of thinking. This inability to look at the community holistically, as a system, may blind one to important linkages.

Fear of Failure: The inability to take a risk or try something new because one is concerned about failure, or being sued, or not arriving at the perfect solution.

If these and other behaviors are not properly managed during the decision making process they can work against a shared vision and quality decisions, regardless of the number of different data sources used. The decision conference model is designed to manage these behaviors.

Decision Conferencing Glass (1979) noted that while citizen participation in decision making was generally accepted, many attempts met with failure because little or no attention was given to structure or desired results. Yoder et al. (1995) also stressed the importance of “planning the plan,” and of filtering all data through a holistic understanding of the situation. Participatory efforts also fail when members of an ad hoc group are asked to sit through long sessions with the expectation that they listen to the “facts” and cast their vote for the agency’s administrative agenda. Rather than the top-down model in which the expert determines the nature and extent of need, leisure service personnel should play a counselling, consultative and mediating role (Coalter, 1990). McLean and Russell (1992) suggest the need to rethink how decision making is operationalized; how those decisions are tied to changing values; how to overcome the traditional way of doing business; and how to respond to changing values through ethical decision making. This in turn will require specialized training if recreation and park professionals are to develop the necessary skills (Tindell, 1984).

The model described here as “decision conferencing” is a tool which provides structure for developing public policy and represents a clear departure from traditional expert driven models. It is built around two notions: 1) that the real experts are the people who routinely use the leisure services provided by the department; and 2) that people are willing to surrender some of their self-interest when they feel they are part of a group (White, 1991). The model generates collaborative efforts among participants rather than confrontation or competition in order to reach consensus (Moore & Feldt, 1993). The process has been developed over a period of ten years in a variety of settings with units of state and local governments.

Little and Farrell (1989) found a significant discovery in inter-group conflict resolution to be the importance of having a “superordinate goal” that appealed to all those involved in the conflict. They felt communication, perceptions, attitudes toward others, and task orientation, were important to competitive and cooperative processes. Decision conferencing manages these elements and involves community factions in the process of achieving consensus on positive superordinate goals.

Decision conferencing stresses the importance of making decisions based on shared values and feelings, as well as data. It is a process, not a content, approach to problem solving which provides a structure that fosters communication, values clarification, and shared commitment to genuine conflict resolution. Group process procedures are used to engage individuals in idea generation, critical reflection and analysis of options, and selection of action plans. The process is designed to empower individuals and the group to look at situations and problems in a new or different way, to incorporate information and emotion from many perspectives, and to make decisions in an informed setting (Moore & Feldt, 1993). It is designed to vest responsibility in a core leadership group which is representative of the community and has been assembled to deal with the specific issue to be resolved. It seeks to make decisions based on consensus and to gain commitment to implementation.

Five broad goals guide the decision conference design: 1) to use the expertise of participants; 2) to separate problem identification from problem solution; 3) to identify and explore as

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full a range of possible solutions as feasible; 4) to gain participants’ commitment to implementation of their recommendations; and 5) to conduct the process in a way that builds the largest possible base of public awareness and support (Whorton, 1993).

The decision conference is a facilitated group work session, usually involving 25-30 people, conducted in a retreat setting. Participants are called upon to use their knowledge of the community and its politics to plan for future recreation and park services. As Gold (1983) noted, change, controversy, compromise and involvement should be expected at all stages of a process like this. Because of this, and the diversity of most ad hoc task forces, group facilitation skills are necessary to properly manage the dynamics of the process. The facilitator(s) can be trained members of the recreation department’s staff or outside consultants. For example, this is an excellent opportunity for a partnership between the park and recreation department and a unit of a college or university, as suggested by Uhlik (1995).

The need for open discussions and the building of trust among participants, requires that participants be in charge of the agenda. This means the facilitator(s) must manage the process and not the content of the deliberations (Whorton, 1993). The outcome of a process like this is not predictable and the sequence of events may not flow smoothly or in any preconceived pattern (Gold, 1983). This also means that an outside consultant who can remain neutral is usually the best facilitator.

The end product is similar to that suggested

by Getz (1986) who advocated a management planning approach that integrated planning away from its traditional preoccupation with master plans and stressed policy formulation as the key activity. Gold (1983) called for planning that resulted in a set of policies, priorities, or criteria that are relatively flexible, diverse, and representative of the community values and needs.

This is what decision conferencing produces.

Applying the Model: A Recreation and Park Example Ewert (1990) noted that park and recreation managers must be aware of the forces which converge on their agencies as they tr y to plan for the future. He said 1) park and recreation oppor-

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tunities are critical issues to the quality of life; 2) the public is becoming more vocal and litigious; 3) collective decision making is an effective way to allow public input, to reduce conflict, and to generate higher quality decisions; and 4) cultural pluralism will further erode the “authority” of park and recreation agencies in deciding what type opportunities will be offered.

Avoiding conflicts, according to Tindell (1984), would best be achieved if recreation and park professionals learned to shift from the role of direct providers to that of community catalyst/ facilitators. Decision conferencing is a way to begin that shift.

The following is a general explanation of the decision conference process for developing a recreation and park plan. It is based on and actual case, in which a large, urban, county park and recreation department (the department) and a service unit of a state university (the consultant), worked together to design and facilitate the planning process.

The Decision Conference Model Pre-Planning.

The first step occurred when the recreation and park department requested planning assistance. As soon as possible, following the request, the consultant met with representatives of the department. In this case the meeting was with a management team composed of the director and the division heads. This allowed both parties to begin the discussion of the outcomes the agency expected from the planning process, a step considered critical by Yoder, et al.

(1995). It is important that both parties communicate openly during this meeting to ensure each of their needs are met. The consultant needs to develop an understanding about the department’s purpose in undertaking the planning effort. The department needs to understand the role of the consultant, and the decision conferencing process that will be used.

Using the information gathered in the first meeting, the consultant developed an initial design to facilitate the department’s planning process. This design was presented at a second meeting. After further discussion of the department’s expectations and of the planning process proposed by the consultant, the terms of a contract, or memorandum of agreement, were finalized.

Achieving Consensus in Planning Recreation and Park Services

The Planning Steering Committee (Blue Ribbon Committee).

The design called for a steering committee, a group of citizens who were representative of the community (age, education level, ethnicity, gender, geography, income, levels of responsibility, recreational interests, physical disability, and viewpoints about current operations and future expectations, etc.). Designated the Blue Ribbon Committee, the steering committee consisted of 34 people and included two county commissioners. It provided overall guidance of the planning process and developed the plan. It met periodically throughout the planning project; e.g., orientation meeting, individual inter views with consultants, public input meetings, and retreats.

The Management Team.

The management team, composed of the director and heads of the departmentâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s three divisions, was intimately involved in the design, logistics, and development of the strategies and will be responsible for overseeing the implementation of the plan. The team met with the consultants weekly.

The Department Action Team.

This team included representatives of all levels within the organization (approximately 70 participants) and helped analyze the work of the

agency and suggest methods for implementation of the strategic plan.

Public Town Hall Meetings.

Nine public input, or Town Hall, meetings were also conducted to provide information about needs, concerns, and issues early in the process. These meetings were conducted throughout the community to make them easily accessible.

Consultants.

The consultants designed the process and facilitated all meetings and decision conferences (retreats). Their role as facilitators was to be neutral in terms of content, but to provide general leadership on the project and to manage the process during work sessions, and to ensure that all input became part of the written record.

Overview of the Planning Process The planning process followed a general pattern (see figure 1), but specific events tended to vary depending on the needs, or desires, of the Blue Ribbon Committee. The following elements were common to the process:

Working Sessions. The process began with discussions with the parks and recreation staff about the project parameters, methodology and work flow.

Figure 1. Overview of the Planning Process

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Steering Committee Formation. The selection of the Blue Ribbon Committee was an open process in which the consultants assisted the recreation and parks staff in selecting a committee broadly representative of the community.

Orientation meeting. The formal planning process began with an orientation for the Blue Ribbon Committee members. They were thanked for participating in the process, given their charge by members of the department and the county commission, and participated in a facilitated discussion about the planning process. Individuals were also asked to sign-up for an hour long, preretreat interview. In addition, some initial team building activities were also conducted.

Interviews. The consultants interviewed all participants in this planning project (staff members, Blue Ribbon committee members, etc.).

Feedback from the interviews was used to identify the issues and hidden agendas that might affect the planning process. The interviews also enabled the consultants to custom design the specific process to be employed throughout the project.

One-day intensive working session with the Blue Ribbon Committee. The major purpose of this facilitated retreat was to create an initial vision for the future of parks and recreation in the county. The Committee began by identifying strengths and weaknesses, and the initial agenda of opportunities and resources on which the department and community could build to reach their desired future. The following are some of the topics generated: r Community Involvement: Involving more people and more businesses in partnerships will make them aware of how much more can be accomplished and will help them understand why things are being done and how the money is being spent. r Public Awareness/Public Relations: This influences the public debate and provides support for funding and resources while exploring new ways to operate. r Acquisition and Development of Land: Stresses the importance of keeping current parks and facilities open while acquiring much needed new land to meet existing demand and that created by projected population growth. r Places for Children: The need for more safe places where children can be involved in positive, fun, learning and growing experiences.

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r Park Improvement/ Facility Improvement: Bringing current parks and facilities up to standard and implementing a program of ongoing improvement. r Successful Programs: Should continue to build on the many successful programs being offered that meet the needs of the neighborhoods where they are located. r Management: The current top management has included citizens in the planning process and we should continue to build on that and to help them understand what people want from parks and recreation. r Diversity of Recreation Services: The people of the county come from many ethnic, national, racial, and religious backgrounds. We need to continue to ensure the needs of all segments of the community are met. r Disparity: There is disparity between the facilities in the northern and southern portions of the county. There seems to be an attitude that lower income residents in the southern part of the county do not need as much as those in the north and this perception must change. r Trust/Act as Community: Everyone seems to be concerned with taking care of themselves.

If we on the Blue Ribbon Committee canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t trust one another, how do we expect to build trust in, and with, the community. r Political Agendas: Parks and recreation is critical to the countyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s quality of life and to its economic development. We need to help people understand that and to make it a key part of every elected officialâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s agenda. r Maintenance: We need to care for our investments rather than only focus on getting new facilities.

This session also provided an opportunity for committee members to get to know one another, to discuss and understand the overall planning process, and to understand their various roles.

Another task accomplished during the retreat was the identification of users who should be extended special invitations to participate in the town hall meeting portion of the process.

Town Hall Meetings. Town Hall Meetings may or may not be included in the planning process. Their primary purpose is to allow the citizens of a community an opportunity to express their concerns. These meetings should be conducted at convenient sites throughout the community. In this planning process, the Blue

Achieving Consensus in Planning Recreation and Park Services

Ribbon Committee identified specific locations and dates, and advertised the meetings. Each member of the steering committee attended at least one of the town hall meetings. The meetings be were facilitated by the consultants. Nine Town Hall meetings were conducted; one in each of the commission districts, with additional meetings for senior citizens, youth (teenagers 12-16), and a county-wide meeting.

Pre Decision Conference Meeting . A one-day session of the Blue Ribbon Committee was held to create an initial vision for the future of parks and recreation services provided by the county.

Strengths, weaknesses, key issues to be addressed, and the results of the town hall meetings were discussed.

Two-day Decision Conference. During a twoday decision conference the Blue Ribbon Committee reviewed the public input information, the ideas of the Department Action Team, focused on problem identification, devised goals and objectives, sought alternative solutions, and developed an implementation plan. This session was held at a location removed from the normal dayto-day activities of the participants. Participants discussed issues in a series of small group work sessions and general report sessions. The consultants designed the retreat and served as work group facilitators in the work sessions. An entire comprehensive recreation and parks plan (maps, capital budgets, tentative site plans, etc.) cannot be prepared during the retreat. What was produced was a vision for the departmentâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s future, prioritized goals and objectives (addressing management, program, and facility needs), and policy recommendations that will guide more detailed land planning, if it is necessar y.

Final Plan Review. A two to three hour meeting was scheduled to allow the Blue Ribbon Committee to conduct a final review of the plan before it was presented to the communityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s elected officials for approval.

Post-Retreat Meetings. The Blue Ribbon Committee met several times following the retreat to tie up loose ends, begin discussing next steps, and to finalize the recommendations they wished to forward to the departmentâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s management staff.

Management Team Retreat . The consultants then facilitated a two-day retreat of the Management Team to synthesize the information devel-

oped by the Blue Ribbon Committee and to begin developing implementation strategies.

Joint Working Session. A joint working session of the Management Team and the Blue Ribbon Committee was held to integrate the policy recommendations and the implementation strategies. This information was turned over to the consultants who drafted a final report for review by the Blue Ribbon Committee before presentation to the Board of County Commissioners.

Presentation of the Final Report . At this point in the process the members of the Blue Ribbon Committee felt fully empowered to make their vision for the future of recreation and parks in the county known. They formed a writing committee and used the report submitted by the consultants to draft their own final report. They presented their findings and recommendations to the Board of Commissioners at a special working session.

Follow-up. Ensuring implementation of the plan requires continued collaboration and commitment beyond submittal of the final report.

Recreation and park department staff must take the lead role in this, but they should have a willing cadre of supporters. Members of the steering committee and all who took part in developing the plan should be called upon to help. In this case, the Blue Ribbon Committee decided to reestablish a defunct 501(c)(3) organization to support the recreation and parks department and to transfer their energies and skills to that organization. Section 501(c)(3) of the Code of the United States Internal Revenue Service (IRS) defines non-profit, charitable organizations and their eligibility for receiving tax-deductible contributions.

As a condition of the partnership with the recreation and parks department, the consultants are also available to provide follow-up assistance.

Conclusions As public recreation and parks agencies face diminishing resources and the increased expectations of the people they serve, they must carefully plan their futures. How they go about planning to meet the needs of the increasingly complex communities they serve is critical to their survival. Such planning should represent what people want, project imaginatively what might be, and recognize realistically what is possible.

It must also actively involve the stakeholders and

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seek to build consensus around shared community values in order to achieve genuine commitment to implementation.

While data from many sources is valuable in the recreation and park planning process, good strategic thinking, thinking that will gain support and will lead to implementation, must begin by involving and listening to an agency ’s stakeholders. The group decision conferencing process recognizes the importance of collaboration and active dialogue, centered on shared community values, as critical to quality decision making and plan implementation. The real experts are the people who routinely deal with the problems and who live in our communities.

Their commitment and support doesn’t come from answering endless surveys, or reading lengthy reports, it comes from their intuitive knowledge of their communities and from feeling that they have been partners in deciding what the future should be. Decision conferencing is a process for bringing this about.

REFERENCES Absher, J. (1986). When do community leaders align with client interests? Journal of Park and Recreation Administration, 4(4), 35-42.

Absher, J.D., McAvoy, L.H., Burdge, R.J., & Gramann, J.H. (1988). Public and commercial managers predicting recreationists opinions. Journal of Park and Recreation Administration, 6(3), 66-77.

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✴ ✴ ✴ DANIEL HOPE III is a public service associate, and L. STEVEN DEMPSEY is a senior public service associate, in the Carl Vinson Institute of Government, a Service Unit of The University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia.

They also hold adjunct positions on the faculty of the Department of Recreation and Leisure Studies at the university.