The mediating role of passion in the relationship between serious leisure and well-being among university sport club participants

Abstract This study examined the mediating roles of two types of passion in explaining the relationship between serious leisure (SL) and well-being. Using the Dualistic Model of Passion, harmonious passion (HP) indicates an adaptive psychological mechanism when one’s serious pursuit authentically expresses one’s identity, whereas obsessive passion (OP) derives from conflicted SL participation and thus inner and interpersonal conflicts are generated. Using survey data obtained from 145 collegiate sport club members, the findings showed that SL was positively associated with HP and OP. HP also fully mediated the relationships between SL and flourishing and sport club-studying balance. Our findings help explain the scattered and elusive evidence of dis-harmonized participation found in previous SL studies. On the other hand, when people can optimally transform activity values into a part of their identity, this mechanism helps people to perceive their life as meaningful and balanced.