<p> This study is an exploratory phenomenological investigation into wilderness users' self-reports about their wilderness experience in two wilderness areas in the Verde Valley, located in north central Arizona. The research inquiry states: <i>What are wilderness users' self-reported reasons for exploring the wilderness, and what effects do they (the users) report after their explorations?</i> The research inquiry strives to investigate the <i>phenomenon</i> that surrounds the <i>wilderness experience</i> and visitors' reasons for their explorations in the wilderness. The data were collected on three weekends in March 2013 at three different trailheads located on the wilderness boundaries of Red Rock-Secret Mountain Wilderness and Sycamore Canyon Wilderness. Over 200 participants contributed data. The data were collected using a demographic form, a questionnaire, and one open-ended interview question. Results from the research found that 88% of participants in the research hold a college education or higher. Over 25% of the participants went to the wilderness areas for the natural environment, which includes the climate, terrain, and rocks. All participants commented on one of the five themes as effects the wilderness had upon them. The five themes were spiritual connectedness, acknowledgement of physical beauty, emotional expression of self, awareness of physical impact, and psychological translation of well-being. Over fifty years of wilderness visitor research supported these research findings. In addition, results, recommendations, limitations, and conclusions are drawn from the research that supported current trends and establishes new ones. The research is built upon pervious wilderness visitor research, and provides a foundation for future research to continue.</p>

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Indiana University, Dept. of Recreation and Park Administration, 2006. / Adviser: Sarah J. Young.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Indiana University, Dept. of Recreation and Park Administration, 2006. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 67-06, Section: A, page: 1995. Adviser: Sarah J. Young. "Title from dissertation home page (viewed June 21, 2007)."

<p> This phenomenological study explored the lived experiences of six whitewater kayakers on the Potomac River on the east coast of the United States. Research participants, three women and three men, ranged in age from 21 to 72. The study reviews as context the history of kayaking and the theories of ecofeminism, participant motivation, transformational experience and environmental responsibility, and narrative identity. Further theories of flow, group flow, and earthflow inform the potential creative synergy of the paddler and the river. The study shows that participant motivations change through time and there are common elements of the experience shared among paddlers. The study proposes four themes and related subthemes that describe the whitewater kayaking experience: initiating, deepening, imagining, and appreciating. The study finds that, over time, whitewater kayakers feel connected to something larger than themselves. The majority of whitewater media coverage is incongruous with the reported experiences of whitewater kayakers. Healing the split between reported experiences and common representations may help broaden the appeal of whitewater kayaking to prospective paddlers, promote more reflective decision-making processes, and further active engagement through conservancy by clarifying the connection between the experience of paddling whitewater and the deep gratitude felt among participants. Other practical implications include bringing questions of community identity and the whitewater journey to the forefront of conversations, so that the community can work toward congruent representations of the whitewater experience that focus on connection to nature rather than glorified risk taking. This may help kayakers form a more seamless, ecocentric riverine identity. </p><p>

<p> The management of the psychological and physiological dimensions of stress can have significant effect on workplace productivity. Yet, stress as a universal human phenomenon is often downplayed or misunderstood by both employees and organizations. This study looked at the effects of stress on the workplace from both an individual and an organizational perspective. An exploratory mixed methods design was used to test the efficacy and potential benefits of providing employees with tools to help them better manage their stress. The three components of Hatha Yoga: breath, movement, and mediation were introduced on site to the employees of a small start-up software company. The treatment was offered to a group of 14 volunteer employees for 15 minutes per day, for 4 weeks during working hours. Three quantitative pre- and post measures, the Perceived Stress Survey (PSS) , the State-Trait Anxiety Index (STAI) , and the Work Engagement Profile (WEP) tested the impact of the treatment as it affected perceived stress, anxiety, and engagement in the workplace. The researcher also gathered qualitative data post treatment from a post treatment questionnaire, her personal observations, and a meeting with the study company's Chief Operating Officer. Only perceived stress, as measured by the PSS, showed a statistically significant decrease among the participants. However, the participants attributed additional benefits to the treatment and stated an intention to continue the treatment activities both individually and as a group. The findings from the quantitative and qualitative data led the researcher to believe that additional research and use of the treatment methods could be beneficial in other workplace settings.</p>

<p> Deaf individuals do not have equal access to participating in sports as their hearing counterparts in the United States. Tennis is one sport to which this lack of access applies. The purpose of this qualitative, narrative research study was to add to the research literature by illuminating the learning experiences of Deaf individuals in tennis in the United States. This study was built on a tripartite conceptual framework consisting of motivation, interaction, and the flow experience. The study explored how tennis influenced other aspects in the lives of Deaf individuals. These other aspects included exposure to the game, learning opportunities, underlying motivations, and social interaction. Participants were 9 Deaf adults who had tennis playing experience. Data were collected from the Deaf Tennis Profile Questionnaire, Deaf Tennis Experience Questionnaire, and a Deaf Tennis Videophone Interview. A priori typological and inductive analyses were used to search for themes and patterns from the data. Findings indicated that learning the game of tennis was relevant to participants' lives. As individuals experienced improvements in their tennis abilities, positive changes in self-perceptions occurred. Participants reported that experiencing the highs and lows while playing tennis increased their motivation and social interaction. Insights from these Deaf tennis participants will give administrators, physical education teachers, coaches, and recreation professionals a better understanding of more effective ways to provide tennis instruction and skills. Self-confident, skillful Deaf tennis players are better contributors to society as a whole. Participation in sports enhances the confidence, self-worth, self-image, and interaction skills of Deaf persons.</p>

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 2008. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 69-05, Section: A, page: 1981. Adviser: Carla Santos. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 148-155) Available on microfilm from Pro Quest Information and Learning.

<p>Few activities have the power to bring people together as sports; victory is contagious, defeat unifies, and the concept of a team can create common goals and unbreakable bonds among teammates, communities, and even an entire nation. In a sense, sport has the power to change lives. The lessons that athletics can teach&mdash;preparation, competitiveness, overcoming obstacles, persistence, mental and physical health, problem solving, and setting life goals&mdash;seem particularly apt for American Indian youth today. Athletics can serve as a pathway to college for American Indian students who participate in individual or team sports. Access to higher education, in turn, offers the opportunity for larger income and greater economic opportunities. The American Indian students&rsquo; college experience, including statistics on enrollment, retention and drop-out rates, is prevalent in both quantitative and qualitative research. Moreover, research concerning the roles athletes and athletics have within higher education institutions is historically rich. The intersection of these two topics however, has received little to no attention. This dissertation will explore the impact of sports on American Indian collegiate athletes to determine the factors that both inspired and inhibited them from the pursuit of athletics in college. It will provide the first in-depth look at several American Indian collegiate athletes who can document how sports helped or failed to help them reach their educational aspirations. </p>

This thesis documents and explores factors influencing the way in which physical education's (PE) contribution to health in the form of health-related exercise (HRE) was viewed, approached and delivered by secondary school PE teachers following the introduction of a national curriculum for physical education (NCPE). The methodology incorporated both quantitative and qualitative approaches. A national survey of 1000 secondary schools in England in 1993 elicited questionnaire responses from 72.8% of heads of PE departments (PE HoDs) from a proportionate sample of schools stratified by type, age range, gender, size, and geographical location. Analysis employed the Statistical Package for Social Scientists (SSPS). Case studies were completed in 1995 in three randomly selected mixed sex state schools in the South, Midlands and North of England. Case study data analysis focused on the progressive identification of themes and concepts associated with the implementation of HRE in the NC. The findings revealed that the NCPE's explicit attention to health issues was welcomed although views varied regarding interpretation, delivery and assessment of the requirements. Most schools had adopted a combination of approaches, involving discrete units and permeation through the activity areas within PE, and/or delivery through other curriculum areas. Consensus existed for some theoretical areas although a physiological bias was evident. There was limited evidence of a well-structured and co-ordinated approach to integrating health issues within the PE activity areas, and that delivered in discrete units often had a itnessorientation, reflecting adaptation of the performance rationale underlying the 'traditional' games-dominated PE programme. Conceptual confusion prevailed regarding the multi-dimensional concept of HRE, and the varying relationships between PE, sport, health, and fitness. The expression of health issues in the NCPE revealed limitations to the accommodation of HRE, mismatches between intentions and outcomes, and a tendency to reflect inequitable practices. Influences included school and individual characteristics, contextual constraints and prevailing ideologies. Creative interpretation of the NCPE remains possible in the form of innovative programmes which integrate health and PE, and which challenge 'physical fitness' and 'sport performance' orientations. A committed, comprehensive and coherent approach to health issues is rarely a central feature of school PE. Nevertheless, a 'shared vision' of the expression of health in the NCPE clearly remains desirable and possible.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--West Virginia University, 2005. / Title from document title page. Document formatted into pages; contains vii, 136 p. : ill. Includes abstract. Includes bibliographical references (p. 115-112).