Leisure and Health Views of Nursing Students and the Implications for Therapeutic Recreation

Abstract

This primarily qualitative research study examined the views of first and second year nursing students regarding leisure and its relationship to health. Thirty-two nursing students reflected on their own lived experiences of leisure by completing an on-line survey. Three of the students added depth to the initial survey results by completing the Leisure Attitude Measure (LAM) and participating in a focus group. This study examined how the nursing students understood the concept of leisure and the connection between leisure and health. As well, it explored the implications that this understanding has on Therapeutic Recreation (TR) professionals as they conduct advocacy and education sessions on the field of TR with other members of the interdisciplinary health care team.

The students’ responses were analyzed using an inductive technique with themes emerging from the data. As a group, the students’ responses touched on many of the components of leisure and connections to health outlined in the literature. However, individual responses were often missing key aspects related to the subjectivity of leisure, the holistic nature of leisure and the potential of leisure and TR in contributing to the treatment of patients. The responses suggest a number of implications for TR professionals as they prepare and deliver educational and advocacy sessions for other staff. From a broader sense, the data raise some areas worth considering in terms of the potential for leisure education within educational and societal contexts.