Applying the Ecological Model to Explore the Influential Factors in Children’s Outdoor Recreation Participation

Childhood is a key developmental period for important physical, cognitive, and social-emotional development. It can serve as a foundation for behaviors, beliefs, and attitudes that carry into adulthood. In terms of outdoor recreation, existing literature denotes many childhood benefits and finds that children who participate in outdoor activities are likely to continue participation into adulthood. This paper uses an ecological perspective to broaden the exploration of childhood factors that contribute to youth participation in outdoor recreation, including interpersonal, community, and societal factors. Of particular importance are parental and family factors, suggesting that outdoor recreation professionals focus on family programming to foster sustainable participation. Adopting an ecological perspective also emphasizes the importance of creating community partnerships, supportive environments, and inclusive programming for diverse children and adults.

An Examination of Social Capital in Outdoor Orientation Programs

Social capital offers campus recreation professionals a framework to conceptualize the impacts of outdoor orientation programming (OOPs). Using data from The Outdoor Orientation Benchmarking Survey (TOOBS), researchers explored results of participants’ ( n = 1,154) responses to two constructs conceptually related to social capital: group trust and network closure. Researchers used factor analysis to examine the psychometric properties of TOOBS, finding group trust and network closure represented different aspects of social capital. Results of the study confirms trust and network closure are related, yet unique aspects of the social capital construct. The results provide an empirically-supported measure for evaluating social capital in outdoor orientation programs.

The Fulfillment of Council on Accreditation of Parks, Recreation and Related Professions Standards Through a Youth-Adult Partnership

The Council on Accreditation of Parks, Recreation, Tourism and Related Professions (COAPRT) outlines standards for recreation programs to ensure a quality educational experience. The current case study presents findings from a youth-adult partnership in support of various COAPRT standards to assist in the development of aspiring recreation professionals. Observation and reflection data from two consecutive partnerships between youth in a high school Physical Education course and collegiate students from a Historically Black College University’s Health, Physical Education, and Recreation program are presented based on the four dimensions of Wu, Kornbluh, Weiss, and Roddy’s (2016) youth-adult partnership (Y-AP) rubric. The results are presented based on the Y-AP rubric’s dimensions: authentic decision making, natural mentors, reciprocity, and community connectedness to illustrate how they support COAPRT standards 7.01(a) (b), 7.02, and 7.03 (COAPRT, 2014). Implications are provided to support the value a Y-AP implementation can provide recreation management programs as they seek and maintain COAPRT accreditation in the development of their students.

The Impact Participation in Recreational Sport in College Has on Student Development and Learning

The National Intramural and Recreational Sports Association's (NIRSA) collaboration in the publication of learning Reconsidered II with council for the Advancement of Standards (CAS) in Higher Education places collegiate recreation professionals are at a crossroads: either continue down the path of simply providing recreational sport activities and services or join with other student service professionals in focusing their effort on student development and learning. The journey towards a learning focus in recreational sports begins in 1994 when NIRSA, the professional organization for recreational sports professionals, published a position statement regarding rationale for Independent Administration of Collegiate Recreational Sports Programs. This chapter explores this journey.

Constraints and Facilitators to Developing Collaborative Campus Wellness Partnerships

This qualitative study explores how campus recreation directors form wellness-based partnerships across campus to serve student wellness needs. Data were collected from 127 campus recreation professionals regarding constraints and facilitators to campus-based wellness partnerships. Data were analyzed using the constant comparison method to identify best practices associated with wellness partnership development. Selected best practices include developing a culture of partnering across campus, formalizing partnerships, and utilizing process- and outcome-based evaluations.

A Needs Assessment for Physical Activity Programming Based on the Transtheoretical Model

The purpose of this study was to (a) examine differences between type of physical activity (PA), college, gender, and body mass index (BMI); and (b) explore the needs of college students in regard to PA programming using the Transtheoretical Model (TTM). Students at a Midwestern university completed a PA programming questionnaire and the Stages of Change questionnaire. After exclusions, 535 questionnaires were analyzed. Of those surveyed, 45.6% met aerobic PA guidelines, 38.5% met muscle-strengthening guidelines, half of the students were of normal weight, and the other half were overweight or obese. Males participated in more PA than females in both categories. The greatest percentage of students were in the maintenance stage of the TTM (38.1%). In regard to PA programming, the largest percentage of students wanted more variety in times and styles for cardio and strength classes. Future campus recreation professionals could consider utilizing a similar survey to identify demographics and stage of change to better design PA programs.