The Role of Leisure Activities during Study Abroad
Open Access
- Author:
- Mannix, Grace
- Area of Honors:
- Recreation and Park Management
- Degree:
- Bachelor of Science
- Document Type:
- Thesis
- Thesis Supervisors:
- Dr. Andrew Justin Mowen, Thesis Supervisor
Dr. Brendan Derrick Taff, Thesis Honors Advisor - Keywords:
- study abroad
leisure
extracurricular activities
recreation - Abstract:
- As we become a more global society, more students are choosing to study abroad during their undergraduate career. While many studies document the various benefits of doing so, there are few studies that have assessed the role of non-structured leisure experiences during a study abroad program. The purpose of this study was to explore the role of structured and non-structured extracurricular activities on a study abroad program, the benefits of non-structured leisure and compare and contrast the outcomes between structured and non-structured extracurricular activities. Ten students who participated in a non-structured leisure activity while studying abroad, and represented the minority culture during that time, were interviewed to gain insights regarding their experiences and to answer study questions. Following recruitment and interviewing, transcripts were coded for emergent themes and subthemes. Thematic coding revealed that while the roles and outcomes of structured and non-structured activities differed, they were also mutually reinforcing. An outcome of structured activities was that they were more likely to meet student expectations, however, program limitations remained. Benefits of non-structured activities, including feeling a sense of autonomy, building lasting relationships, and experiencing the culture from a different perspective led to outcomes of personal connections with local people, immersion, greater responsibility for the student and professional development. Responses suggested the students go outside of their comfort zone and continue a hobby while studying abroad, study abroad programs continue to be supportive of students that want to venture beyond the program activities and market non-structured activities in marketing, and researchers further explore how leisure pursuits independent from the study abroad program affect a student’s overall experience with a larger sample size.