Introduction to theme issue on leisure across the life course

Abstract

Life course refers to the transitions of a person’s development as one moves from infant to older adult and through possible life stages such as spouse or parent (Singleton, 2013). As one enters and leaves different stages of the life course, leisure opportunities and behaviors may vary and change (Mannell & Kleiber, 1997). The seven papers in this theme issue give snapshots into some groups at certain life stages (college students, youth, Generation Y women, mothers, older adults) in various places around the globe (e.g., India, Taiwan, the United States), thereby enhancing our understanding of the complexity and variety of leisure throughout the life course. Using cluster analysis, Hartman et al. (2022) investigated the relationships between free time perceptions, well-being and identity development among emerging adults with an average age of 20.07 years who attended college at a university in the southeastern United States. The resulting four clusters differed significantly in their levels of free time awareness (cognitive perceptions) and boredom (affective perceptions). Lack of free time opportunities and higher levels of boredom were associated with mental health issues, while approaches to free time use reflected and affected identity formation which is central to the development of emerging adults. On the other side of the world in India, Deshbandhu et al. (2022) explored with qualitative interviews and co-playing observations the engagement of five youth, ranging in age from 21 to 28 years, in the game Pok emon Go. Using Soja’s (1996) concept of “thirdspace,” this paper suggests that in rapidly urbanizing India where there are fewer opportunities for physical play and social interaction, Pok emon Go creates hybrid habitats where participants generate their own meanings of leisure, youth, and gaming that facilitate empowerment and initiative among the participants. The next study, by Ho (2022), utilized the social exchange framework to investigate the social leisure activities of 18 urban Taiwanese women aged 28 to 37 who belong to Generation Y. Social leisure activities were motivated by both extrinsic motivations such as friendship and socializing and the intrinsic motivations of meeting one’s emotional needs. Thus, social leisure activities characterized by positive emotion and commitment, in addition to being leisure settings, were contexts for enlarging social networks and relationships as well as nourishing the positive effects of happiness and satisfaction. In a study completed in North Carolina, MacNell et al. (2022) conducted interviews with 138 low-income mothers, with an average age of 34 years, to examine how motherhood shaped their decisions and capability to participate in physical activity during leisure time as well as to understand facilitators and barriers to this activity. Although participants tended to believe that physical activity was important for a healthy lifestyle, they identified several barriers to this activity including lack of access to physical activity places, the high cost of