Despite a substantial volume of research on identity in the social and behavioral sciences, identity theory has existed on the margins of the leisure literature and contributed to the understanding of leisure behavior only in occasional illustrative references. The purpose of this dissertation was to incorporate identity theory in the understanding individuals? leisure behavior within the context of recreational golf. Three independent studies were conducted to address different yet interconnected research topics. The first study identified conceptual links between identity theory and the concepts of enduring involvement, commitment, loyalty, specialization and serious leisure. Guided by identity theory, it was suggested that identity-confirmation is the underlying reason why individuals become involved in a leisure activity and develop a commitment and side bets. Further, this study proposed that self-verification processes underline why individuals value certain lines of action (i.e., enduring involvement, commitment, and specialization) and, in turn, become specialists, amateurs or loyal clients. The second study investigated the relationship between gender identity, leisure identity and leisure participation. Using data collected from recreational golfers, results showed that both leisure identity and masculine identity positively influenced respondents? participation in recreational golf. Furthermore, the findings illustrated that masculine identity plays a formative role in the development of a leisure identity, which in turn is an antecedent of leisure behavior. The third study adopted the concept of identity conflict/facilitation to provide a theoretical framework for understanding the experience of constraints to leisure and constraint negotiation. Using data collected from recreational golfers, analyses provided evidence in support of the contention that identity conflict/facilitation is an antecedent of perceived constraints and negotiation efforts. The findings also illustrated that the ability to negotiate constraints depends on the compatibility between the leisure identity and the other identities an individual holds. Finally, a summary and synthesis of the findings and agenda for future research were discussed.

Despite a substantial volume of research on identity in the social and behavioral sciences, identity theory has existed on the margins of the leisure literature and contributed to the understanding of leisure behavior only in occasional illustrative references. The purpose of this dissertation was to incorporate identity theory in the understanding individuals? leisure behavior within the context of recreational golf. Three independent studies were conducted to address different yet interconnected research topics. The first study identified conceptual links between identity theory and the concepts of enduring involvement, commitment, loyalty, specialization and serious leisure. Guided by identity theory, it was suggested that identity-confirmation is the underlying reason why individuals become involved in a leisure activity and develop a commitment and side bets. Further, this study proposed that self-verification processes underline why individuals value certain lines of action (i.e., enduring involvement, commitment, and specialization) and, in turn, become specialists, amateurs or loyal clients. The second study investigated the relationship between gender identity, leisure identity and leisure participation. Using data collected from recreational golfers, results showed that both leisure identity and masculine identity positively influenced respondents? participation in recreational golf. Furthermore, the findings illustrated that masculine identity plays a formative role in the development of a leisure identity, which in turn is an antecedent of leisure behavior. The third study adopted the concept of identity conflict/facilitation to provide a theoretical framework for understanding the experience of constraints to leisure and constraint negotiation. Using data collected from recreational golfers, analyses provided evidence in support of the contention that identity conflict/facilitation is an antecedent of perceived constraints and negotiation efforts. The findings also illustrated that the ability to negotiate constraints depends on the compatibility between the leisure identity and the other identities an individual holds. Finally, a summary and synthesis of the findings and agenda for future research were discussed.

There is a noticeable decline in physical activity participation during transitions, including moving between levels of education (Bray & Born, 2004; Gyursick, Bray & Brittain, 2004; Bray & Kwan, 2007). Despite its importance, little is known about the process of successful transitions and how it impacts physical activity behaviour for university students. A way to further understand the transition process is to explore the leisure constraints and the constraints negotiation process for these young adults. The purpose of this study was to examine physically active leisure for young adults, who were successful at continuing their participation in physical activity during their transition into university. Students were recruited from randomly selected 2nd and 3rd year general courses and invited to participate in a semi-structured, one on one interview with the researcher. Fourteen semi-structured interviews were conducted with second to fourth year university students at a mid-size western Canadian university. Their narratives explored students’ beliefs, constraints, and constraint negotiation strategies they used to stay physically active, in a variety of individual and team sport physical activities. The participants were categorized into four categories, based on their participation level, and an in-depth analysis of narratives was done for each participant category. These profiles are rated on a continuum that determined whether they were more or less active than before, and on the types of the activities they pursued. The comparison and the placement into the particular categories were determined by what type of activities they are doing at university. The students reported having both positive orientation and an identity that was associated with their active behaviour. Physical activity was noted as a higher priority in their lives. Their current student environment and student lifestyle was an enabler for physically active behaviours. Students described feeling constrained, in some aspects of their behaviour, but because physical activity was a higher priority, they were able to successfully negotiate those constraints. A key theme that emerged from these stories was enjoyment, but for two separate reasons; the social aspect and a challenge aspect. These aspects were found in the same activity or different activity, depending on the interests of the participant. However, it is important that the individual understand why they participate in physical activity and the outcome(s) they seek. This will help the student continue their physical activity behaviour during transitions, into post-secondary education and through other life course stages. / Graduate

The conceptualization of leisure constraints is dependent on negotiating a hierarchy of intrapersonal, interpersonal, and structural leisure constraints. It has become a recognizable and distinct subfield within leisure studies. Research has shown that the leisure constraints should not be necessarily viewed as insurmountable obstacles. Individuals can negotiate constraints by applying an array of coping mechanisms. Recently, Iwasaki and Schneider (2003) and Schneider and Stanis (2007) proposed that constraints negotiation and coping with stress share much in common. Leisure constraints are considered elements of stress, whereas constraint negotiation appears to share commonalities with ways of coping with stress. The distinction between negotiation and coping is that negotiation is something people have engaged in prior to participating in the activity, whereas coping involves strategies people more typically engage in during active participation (in response to unwanted or unanticipated situations). Based on past literature, I constructed a constraints-coping model to extend our understanding of constraints negotiation by integrating an understanding of coping mechanisms into leisure constraints-negotiation models. In order to broaden the scope of a constraints-coping framework, I integrated additional social indicators (e.g., commitment, motivation, place attachment, and frequency of participation) into my hypothesized model. First, my testing of the constraints-coping model provided empirical support for Iwasaki and his colleagues' suggestion that coping strategies can be potentially integrated into models of constraints-negotiation processes. Second, I confirmed that the three types of onsite constraints continue to have relevance for active participants. The three types of constraining factors directly influence subsequent aspects of leisure engagement for recreationists already participating. Third, I confirmed that recreationists are more likely to cope with constraints by employing an array of problem-focused coping strategies, rather than to simply adjust cognitively. However, my findings illustrate that recreationists' coping responses vary in response to different types of constraints encountered (e.g., intrapersonal, interpersonal, and structural). The experience of constraints did not universally result in the increased use of coping. Fourth, my results confirm that motivation is an immediate antecedent of constraints as well as a potential trigger for encouraging more problem-focused coping strategies. Last, four selected key variables (e.g., place attachment, commitment motivation, and frequency of participation) demonstrated different effects on influencing active participants' perceived constraints and subsequent coping strategies. Future investigations of coping strategies should continue to explore how active participants cope with onsite constraints based on a constraints-coping model in different settings.