This study explored the lived experiences of chronic illness during adolescence and emerging adulthood. Previous research has indicated that chronic illness can result in disruptions to people’s lives because of the related physical challenges and social stigmas. These challenges may be particularly salient in adolescence and emerging adulthood because of pressure to “fit in” with peers, cultural associations between youth and health, and limited experience adjusting to difficult life events. However, little is known about the impact of having a chronic illness on the lives of young people. This study addresses the over-arching question: how and when can chronic illness become a problem for young people in their everyday lives (i.e., leisure, relationships, school and work) and what types of adjustments are made as a result? The final sample of participants in this study consisted of 29 young people (23 women, 6 men) each of whom was living with a chronic illness. Unstructured in-depth interviews were conducted with 26 participants, as well as 3 semi-structured electronic interviews. Data were analyzed using a grounded theory approach. The findings suggested that the main challenge for young people with illness is achieving a desired identity. Being able to achieve a desired identity was tied to three processes. These processes included participants’ ability to manage their appearances and reputations, accomplish desired activities, and experience positive relationships. Although most adolescents and emerging adults to some degree face these same challenges in attempting to achieve desired identities, experiences associated with chronic illness can intensify these challenges. Further, the factors that contribute to them being challenging seem to be unique to those living with a chronic illness. The findings also suggested that participants’ experienced chronic illness in varied ways. Many of the adjustments and factors that contributed to these differences, including how people’s experiences changed over time are identified. These adjustments and factors are similar to the coping strategies and constraint negotiation strategies identified in previous research at a generic level. The specific ways in which young people with chronic illness are able to achieve identity is also described, including differences within the experiences of participants.

Literature within the tourism discipline emphasized the importance of destination image due to its effect on both supply and demand sides of marketing. Gunn’s seven-stage model illustrated the process and evolution of image formation of a destination has been used as a guiding model in the study. The purpose of this study is to explore the coherence and the difference between pre-conceived images and post-images of China holding by the North American tourists. Purposive sampling was adapted to reach the target participants who fit the study criteria. Qualitative data were collected from eight interviews with participants from Canada and America. Semi-structured interviews with open-ended questions were conducted during October and November 2011. Essences were developed from the analysis of the interview data by conducting initial coding and focused coding. Findings of the study were concluded into three parts: before visiting China; actual travel experiences; and after visiting China. Consistent with Gunn (1972)’s seven-stage theory, findings of the study showed a clear change between pre-conceived images and post-images holding by participants. Images involved from simple, vague, mythical, and stereotypical to comprehensive, realistic, and holistic. Moreover, advantages and problems of the international tourism in China emerged with the progress of data analysis. The findings reflected the perceptions of China in the eyes of North American tourists; consequently, it could contribute to the future tourism practitioners who aim to promote China to be a desirable international tourism destination.

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore the role of the Good Shepherd, a Catholic charitable organization, in the lives of those involved in it. Data collection methods consisted of semi-structured interviews and a limited amount of participant observation. A reflexive journal was also kept to help challenge and reflect on the assumptions I had as a researcher throughout the study. Three major themes emerged from data analysis: (1) experiencing complex interactions within Good Shepherd, (2) fostering a culture of support, and (3) acknowledging that everyone has a different life story. The first theme described participants’ experiences in terms of associating with other individuals involved with the organization. The second theme demonstrates the different types of support that are felt by all associated with the Good Shepherd. The third theme illustrates how those involved in the Good Shepherd learn to appreciate each individual and to value everyone’s life story. As a result of this phenomenological study, I challenged my original assumptions of those facing homelessness and developed a new understanding based on my experiences with all participants at the organization. Specifically, my beliefs changed in three ways. I learned that the problem of homelessness is a complicated phenomenon that involves more than the lack of a house, but a complex array of factors. I learned that those facing homelessness still value their dignity and constantly fight to maintain their sense of self-worth. And finally, I learned that those who are facing homelessness have not given up on life. Four recommendations for future research emerged from this study: (1) studies comparing the perspectives of staff and clients associated with charitable organizations should be examined in order to identify the discrepancies between the two, (2) the benefits of leisure stress coping should continue to be tested to see its effects on those who are faced with homelessness, (3) studies comparing the differences between leisure usage and leisure opportunities for those facing homelessness should be addressed, and finally, (4) the specific benefits of having a sense of belonging to a community for those who are homeless should be identified.

This phenomenological study explored the experiences of farm families starting and operating agritourism. Many extant studies of agritourism have privileged positivistic methodologies and quantitative approaches. To better understand the lived experiences of farm families who have started and embrace agritourism and to fully appreciate the intertwined and complex nature of the various factors involved within the family, a more interpretative approach was required. Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis(IPA) guided the design, analysis, and overall implementation of the study. Phenomenology allowed meaningful experiences and essential structures associated with the phenomenon of agritourism, from the perspective of those directly involved in it, to be fully and deeply explored. In this study, three multi-generational farm families actively engaged in agritourism within Ontario participated. Unlike previous agritourism studies which just involved one family member, usually the farmer, as many members of each farm family as possible were included in this study. A total of 17 members across the three families participated and data were collected through a combination of on-site observations and active interviews. Beginning with a simple introductory question of each participant, “Can you tell me how agritourism got started on your farm”, a number of themes emerged. By taking an interpretative stance, the individual themes were further baled into six super-ordinate themes: • Retailing, Educating, Entertaining– describing agritourism; • Being the Face of Farming–the re-connecting of farms and farmers to consumers; • We Are the Farm–impressions about how agritourism is retaining and sustaining a farming identity while introducing unique challenges associated with embracing agritourism on the farm; • Family Comes First–speaking to the prevalence of economics as a reason for embracing agritourism, while also further exploring agritourism’s role in sustaining the family farm; • Coming Home–focuses on the inseparability of the farm as a place of residence and work where new challenges, opportunities, and attitudes towards intergenerational transfer of the farm emerge; and finally, • Becoming an Agritourism Farm–captures the incremental process and key watershed moments associated with switching into agritourism. By exploring the experience of agritourism from the perspectives of the families, our understanding of agritourism has been expanded, while some of our pre-existing beliefs and assumptions about agritourism are also challenged. Getting involved in agritourism was articulated by farm families as occurring through a series of smaller, incremental decisions usually over several years as the farm naturally took on new and additional activities and eventually evolved into an agritourism enterprise. The transition revealed the place – the farm, and the people integral and historically associated with it – as a productive agricultural space was changing into being consumptive spaces. The unplanned transition into agritourism affected the farmer as well as other members of the family. However, the transition also sustained a farming identity and way of life in an era of intense globalization and agricultural intensification. This study sheds light on how different members of the families have been involved in the process, as well as illuminated new perspectives on: how agritourism sustains key characteristics defining a family farm, how the farm re-engages with consumers, how an entrepreneurial spirit is fostered, and how continuous adaptation on the farm ensures its viability for future generations of the family.

This phenomenological study explored the experiences of farm families starting and operating agritourism. Many extant studies of agritourism have privileged positivistic methodologies and quantitative approaches. To better understand the lived experiences of farm families who have started and embrace agritourism and to fully appreciate the intertwined and complex nature of the various factors involved within the family, a more interpretative approach was required. Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis(IPA) guided the design, analysis, and overall implementation of the study. Phenomenology allowed meaningful experiences and essential structures associated with the phenomenon of agritourism, from the perspective of those directly involved in it, to be fully and deeply explored. In this study, three multi-generational farm families actively engaged in agritourism within Ontario participated. Unlike previous agritourism studies which just involved one family member, usually the farmer, as many members of each farm family as possible were included in this study. A total of 17 members across the three families participated and data were collected through a combination of on-site observations and active interviews. Beginning with a simple introductory question of each participant, “Can you tell me how agritourism got started on your farm”, a number of themes emerged. By taking an interpretative stance, the individual themes were further baled into six super-ordinate themes: • Retailing, Educating, Entertaining– describing agritourism; • Being the Face of Farming–the re-connecting of farms and farmers to consumers; • We Are the Farm–impressions about how agritourism is retaining and sustaining a farming identity while introducing unique challenges associated with embracing agritourism on the farm; • Family Comes First–speaking to the prevalence of economics as a reason for embracing agritourism, while also further exploring agritourism’s role in sustaining the family farm; • Coming Home–focuses on the inseparability of the farm as a place of residence and work where new challenges, opportunities, and attitudes towards intergenerational transfer of the farm emerge; and finally, • Becoming an Agritourism Farm–captures the incremental process and key watershed moments associated with switching into agritourism. By exploring the experience of agritourism from the perspectives of the families, our understanding of agritourism has been expanded, while some of our pre-existing beliefs and assumptions about agritourism are also challenged. Getting involved in agritourism was articulated by farm families as occurring through a series of smaller, incremental decisions usually over several years as the farm naturally took on new and additional activities and eventually evolved into an agritourism enterprise. The transition revealed the place – the farm, and the people integral and historically associated with it – as a productive agricultural space was changing into being consumptive spaces. The unplanned transition into agritourism affected the farmer as well as other members of the family. However, the transition also sustained a farming identity and way of life in an era of intense globalization and agricultural intensification. This study sheds light on how different members of the families have been involved in the process, as well as illuminated new perspectives on: how agritourism sustains key characteristics defining a family farm, how the farm re-engages with consumers, how an entrepreneurial spirit is fostered, and how continuous adaptation on the farm ensures its viability for future generations of the family.

Orientador: Maria Juraci Zani dos Santos / Banca: José Bueno Conti / Banca: Mirna Lygia Vieira / Resumo: A pesquisa "Clima e Turismo no Município de Botucatu (SP)" teve como objetivo principal analisar as características climáticas de Botucatu, com base nos dados dos parâmetros meteorológicos: temperatura e precipitação pluviométrica cedidos pela Estação Meteorológica da UNESP - Campus de Lageado. Analisou-se também, o Plano Diretor de Turismo para o Município de Botucatu (2001), procurando apresentar os recursos naturais, os patrimoniais, os históricos-arquitetônicos e os recursos públicos, em conjunto com os recursos climáticos favoráveis para o turismo sustentável na região. / Abstract: The research "Weather and Tourism in Botucatu County" had as its main aim the analysis of the weather characteristics of Botucatu (SP) with basis on the data of following weather parameters: temperature and water precipitation supplied by the Weather Forecasting Station of "UNESP - Lageado Campus". It was also analyzed the "Tourism Directive Plan" for "Botucatu County" (2001) aiming to show the natural resources, the patrimonial resources, the historical - architectonical resources and the public resources together with the favorable weather resources for the uphold able tourism in the region. / Mestre

The research presented in this thesis sought to explore the ways in which patriarchal relations are constructed and contested within and through the leisure policy process. Drawing on structuration theory, socialist feminism and malestream critical sociological analyses, a methodology was developed for examining the situated practices of leisure professionals and local politicians in the local state at a time of economic and political restructuring in the late 1980s. The research explored the gender dimensions of recruitment to and experience of local government leisure professional and party political groups, and the extent to which women and men as gendered subjects were able to influence the leisure policy process. Of particular concern was the significance of leisure policy in feminist struggle. Also explored in the research were the kinds of gender ideologies circulating and the articulation of professional and party political ideologies with gender ideologies. An important consideration was the kinds of ideologies which were emerging and gaining ascendancy during the period of economic and political restructuring. Arts and recreation policy in two local authorities were selected for detailed study. The main method of inquiry was semi-structured interviews with a number of local professional officers (n=30) and local politicians (n=37). Visits to sports centres and art galleries provided additional sources of data, as did policy documents and observations of council and relevant committee and sub-committee meetings. The contribution of the research presented in this thesis is twofold : the development of a methodology for exploring the gender dimensions of the leisure policy process; and the generation of knowledge of the gender dimensions of leisure policy process. The research methodology implies a strategic relations approach to analysis of the state in which the state is theorised as a set of distinct institutions which at any one moment reflect the outcome of former struggles and provide the context for future struggles. The research thus gives an indication of the complex configurations of struggles within the local state leisure policy process, and brings into focus the articulation of some key dimensions of those struggles - gender, professional, party political, and local-central relations.

In the United States, COVID-19-related restrictions included a stay-at-home order with the exception of essential services such as medical care, grocery shopping, etc. During this time, all universities transitioned to an online learning format. This study examined the impact of COVID-19 on physical activity lifestyle changes within a university community. This was a cross-sectional study in which assessed changes in lifestyle-related behavior during the Covid-19 pandemic, the amount of sedentary time spent each week, and the underlying reasons behind people’s decisions as to whether to engage in physical activity. The respondents (n=1536) The results of this survey (n=1536) showed that 52.2% were between 18 and 25 years of age, 87.4% Caucasian, 56.7% single and 67.7% female. The mean BMI was 25.8 with 2.6% underweight, 40.9% healthy weight, and 56.5% overweight or obese according to the CDC. Study results showed significant differences between Healthy weight and Obese and between Overweight and Obese with regard to lifestyle-related behavior with those having higher BMIs being affected most by COVID-19. This was the same trend seen with the Physical Activity Vital Sign (PAVS) which is a measure of time spent in physical activity. Underweight (m=265.2) and healthy weight individuals (m=262.5) spent more time being physically active. Lastly, those with healthy BMIs differed significantly from all other BMI categories with regard to the BREQ-3 Relative Autonomy Index suggesting that those with healthier BMIs felt greater autonomy with regard to exercise behavior.

Serious academic enquiry for the tourism sector may appear inconsequential, but the business of tourism is complex and fragmented. Tourism is a multi-disciplinary phenomenon facilitating research from a number of different angles and providing many services requiring partnership between public and private collaboration towards delivering an effective tourism sector. Waterloo Regional Council declared its aspiration for Waterloo Region to be a destination of choice. However, there has been no research conducted to understand the viability of this aspiration. Thus, this research understands from a stakeholder perspective how tourism development is being undertaken in the Region. This will provide a preliminary understanding on tourism development in the context of economic, social and environmental dimensions of development. The joint use of two theoretical frameworks helped to identify and manage divergent perspectives of sixteen stakeholders who provided the primary data for this research. The data revealed three major themes through a changing lens that first considers the role of tourism as an effective vehicle of development. This meets with change due to limitations and uncertainties due to constraints that lead to conflicts between stakeholders responsible for its development. Findings reveal that stakeholders confront numerous fundamental challenges, which provide constraints and bottlenecks for tourism development in the Region. This research understands the need for leadership, strategy and effective collaboration between all stakeholders as vital for tourism development.

ABSTRACT The cruise sector constitutes one of the fastest growing sectors of the tourism industry. With the continued growth of the industry comes the need to develop new ports to accommodate the increased volume of ships as well as the increasing size of modern cruise ships. It is important to understand how the development of new cruise ports impacts the local community. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to identify the attitudes and perceptions of residents regarding the impacts of the new cruise ship port development in Falmouth, Jamaica. The Historic Port of Falmouth was developed through a partnership between Royal Caribbean and the Port Authority of Jamaica and is the largest purpose-built port of call in the Caribbean. A case study approach was utilized to identify the attitudes and perceptions of residents regarding the impacts of the new port development in Falmouth, Jamaica. The study consisted of semi-structured interviews, and participant observation. The research took place in Falmouth in March 2012. A total of 23 interviews were carried out with residents who had varying levels of involvement with tourism. The three overarching themes emanating from the analysis of the data are: Big Ships, Big Disappointment, What could be improved? and All is Not Lost at Sea. Findings revealed that Falmouth residents are disappointed with the development because they have not received the economic benefits they were promised by Royal Caribbean. Despite the residents’ frustration and disappointment with the port, many still believe that it has given some opportunity for residents to improve their quality of life. The powerlessness of members of small Caribbean communities in the face of large tourism developers is evident throughout the study.