Towards a Strengths-Based Personal Informatics Framework for Transformative Tourism Experiences: A Phenomenological Study on Serious Leisure Practitioners

Personal technology plays an integral role in shaping people’s quality of life which includes leisure and tourism experiences. A number of personal informatics tools can support people in performing their activities by collecting biometric and environmental data; however, little is known regarding the use of psychological data to enrich leisure and tourism experiences. To address this research gap, this study aims to propose a conceptual framework that fosters memorable and meaningful leisure experiences (MMEs) based on theories from serious leisure and positive psychology. In particular, this study probes into the MMEs of serious leisure practitioners who put their efforts and resources into pursuing intrinsically rewarding leisure activities. Excelling at these activities, which may draw upon participants’ character strengths, yields sustained fulfillment which fosters personal transformation. The idiosyncratic nature of MMEs demands a phenomenological inquiry that involves in-depth interviews concerning the character strengths used and their development trajectories. Using theory triangulation from both positive psychology and serious leisure allows researchers to gain a holistic view of participants’ well-being. Character strengths were found to be the integral factors that contribute to MMEs at different stages of leisure activities. The result identified three aspects of strengths used: strengths well spent, reflection and introspection, and anticipation of the future self, which informs the development of a strengths-based personal informatics framework for leisure and tourism.

Psychological Well-Being of Youth: The Role of Gratitude and Hope

The present study has been conducted on the youth (N=200) of age group 18-24 years to find the role of the character strengths of gratitude and hope in their psychological well-being. Gratitude and hope have been assessed using the Value in Action Inventory of Strengths (Peterson and Seligman, 2004), and psychological well-being has been assessed using the Psychological Well-Being Scale by Carol Ryff (1989). The data has been analyzed by using Pearson correlation and linear regression. The findings depict a significant positive correlation of gratitude and hope with the psychological well-being of youth. Also, the regression analysis establishes the significant and positive role of gratitude and hope in predicting the psychological well-being of youth.

Humility in Senior High School Students

Humility is a virtue, and it is important that this character strength is cultivated in school. This study aimed to examine the humility of students and what students think about humility. A total of 499 students were included. An online survey was used which employed a humility questioner with the Elliot theory construct (this included the following aspects: openness, accurate self-assessment, self-forgetfulness and focus on others). Data were analyzed descriptively, examining the percentage of each item. The results showed that the majority of students tended to want to seek information and could accept suggestions from others. There were 291 students who claimed to always think about others, not only think about themselves; 207 answered that they sometimes do; and only one student answered that they never do. 400 students were able to understand their own weaknesses and strengths, while 98 were not able to assess themselves. Students also tended to respond, understand, and evaluate themselves when receiving criticism and suggestions. Students viewed humility as not being arrogant, being humble, being able to respect other students and teachers, and helping others. It is recommended that further research investigates effective counseling models to increase student humility, and examines other connected virtues. Keywords: humility, character strengths, students