The sociology of leisure or leisure sociology is the study of how humans organize their

free time Free time, traditionally usually called ''leisure time'' or ''leisure'', refers to the time when one is not working. It may also refer to: *Free time (music) Free time is a type of musical anti-meter free from musical time and time signature. I ...

. Leisure includes a broad array of activities, such as

sport Sport pertains to any form of competitive physical activity or game that aims to use, maintain, or improve physical ability and skills while providing enjoyment to participants and, in some cases, entertainment to spectators. Sports can, ...

tourism Tourism is travel for pleasure or business; also the theory and practice of touring, the business of attracting, accommodating, and entertaining tourists, and the business of operating tours. The World Tourism Organization defines tourism mor ...

, and the playing of games. The sociology of leisure is closely tied to the

sociology of work Sociology is a social science that focuses on society, human social behavior, patterns of social relationships, social interaction, and aspects of culture associated with everyday life. It uses various methods of empirical investigation and ...

, as each explores a different side of the work-leisure relationship. More recent studies in the field move away from this relationship, however, and focus on the relation between leisure and

culture Culture () is an umbrella term which encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, customs, capabilities, and habits of the individuals in these groups ...

. Studies of leisure have determined that observable patterns in human leisure behavior cannot be explained solely by socioeconomic variables such as age, income, occupation or education. The type of leisure activity is substantially influenced by the numerous more complex factors, such as presence or lack of family, religious beliefs and general cultural values one adheres to.

Definitions and theoretical concerns

As John Wilson and others have noted, it is difficult to define

leisure Leisure has often been defined as a quality of experience or as free time. Free time is time spent away from business, work, job hunting, domestic chores, and education, as well as necessary activities such as eating and sleeping. Leisur ...

.Sheila Scraton, "Leisure," in George Ritzer, ed., ''Blackwell Encyclopedia of Sociology''
Online
Last accessed on 20 January 2010John Wilson, "The Sociology of Leisure," ''Annual Review of Sociology'', vol. 6, August 1980, pp. 21–40
OnlineJSTOR
/ref> Its definitions are numerous and often mutually contradictory, for example as a discrete portion of one's time or as a quality of experience irrespective of time. Joffre Dumazedier distinguished four distinct definitions of leisure, which begin broadly and gradually narrow in scope.Stanley Parker, "The Sociology of Leisure: Progress and Problems," ''The British Journal of Sociology'', vol. 26, no. 1, March 1975, pp. 91–101
JSTOR
/ref> The first and broadest defines leisure as a style of behavior that may occur even at work, the second defines it as any non-work activity; the third further excludes family and household obligations; and, finally, the narrowest defines leisure as activities dedicated to self-fulfillment. Dumazedier's four definitions are not exhaustive. Incompatible definitions and measures are seen as a major factor accounting for occasionally contradictory research findings. There are some unresolved questions concerning the definition of work: in particular, whether unpaid endeavors, such as volunteering or studying, are work. Non-work time should not be equated with free time, as it comprises not only free time, dedicated to leisure, but also time dedicated to certain obligatory activities, such as housework. Dividing activities into free and dedicated time is not easy. For example, brushing one's teeth is neither work nor leisure; scholars differ in their classifications of activities such as eating a meal, shopping, repairing a car, attending a religious ceremony, or showering (various individuals may or may not classify such activities as leisure). The relation between work and leisure can also be unclear: research indicates that some individuals find skills that they have acquired at work useful to their hobbies (and vice versa), and some individuals have used leisure activities to advance their work careers. Sociologists also disagree as to whether political or spiritual activities should be included in studies of leisure.S.R. Parker, "Sociology of Leisure," ''Sociology'', 10 (1), 1976, Oxford (0038-0385), p. 166
Online
/ref> Further, among some occupational communities, such as police officers or miners, it is common for colleagues to be off-time friends and to share similar, work-based leisure activities. Apart from a definition of leisure, there are other questions of theoretical concern to the sociologist of leisure. For example, quantifying the results is difficult, as time-budget studies have noted that a given amount of time (for example, an hour) may have different values, depending on when it occurs—within a day, a week, or a year. Finally, as with many other fields of inquiry in the social sciences, the study of the sociology of leisure is hampered by the lack of reliable data for comparative

longitudinal studies A longitudinal study (or longitudinal survey, or panel study) is a research design that involves repeated observations of the same variables (e.g., people) over short or long periods of time (i.e., uses longitudinal data). It is often a type of obs ...

, as there was little to no standardized data-gathering on leisure throughout most of human history. The lack of longitudinal studies has been remedied in the last few decades by recurring national surveys such as the General Household Survey in the United Kingdom (ongoing since 1971). In addition to surveys, an increasing number of studies have been focusing on qualitative methods of research (

interviews An interview is a structured conversation where one participant asks questions, and the other provides answers.Merriam Webster DictionaryInterview Dictionary definition, Retrieved February 16, 2016 In common parlance, the word "interview" r ...

History

Sociology of leisure is a fairly recent subfield of sociology, compared to more traditional subfields such as

sociology of the family Sociology of the family is a subfield of the subject of sociology, in which researchers and academics study family structure as a social institution and unit of socialization from various sociological perspectives. It can be seen as an example o ...

, or

sociology of education The sociology of education is the study of how public institutions and individual experiences affect education and its outcomes. It is mostly concerned with the public schooling systems of modern industrial societies, including the expansion of ...

: it saw most of its development in the second half of the 20th century.Gordon Marshall, "Leisure, sociological studies of," ''A Dictionary of Sociology'', 1998, Encyclopedia.com
Online
Last accessed on 20 January 2010 Until then, leisure had often been seen as a relatively unimportant, minor feature of

society A society is a group of individuals involved in persistent social interaction, or a large social group sharing the same spatial or social territory, typically subject to the same political authority and dominant cultural expectations. Soci ...

. Now, however, it is now recognized as a major

social institution Institutions are humanly devised structures of rules and norms that shape and constrain individual behavior. All definitions of institutions generally entail that there is a level of persistence and continuity. Laws, rules, social conventions a ...

, deserving of serious sociological inquiry, particularly in Western societies. One of the earliest theories of leisure originates from

Karl Marx Karl Heinrich Marx (; 5 May 1818 – 14 March 1883) was a German philosopher, economist, historian, sociologist, political theorist, journalist, critic of political economy, and socialist revolutionary. His best-known titles are the 1848 ...

, whose theory was discussed through a 'realm of freedom'. Karl Marx's criticisms of capitalism, saw the structures of capital as in conflict with people truly reaching leisure.The Marx-Engels Reader. New York : Norton, 1978. Print. The basis of leisure is rooted in economics and politics, as those are intertwined also. In contrast to a more socialist approach, many would see leisure time as an excuse for unproductivity and as something you don't deserve. Not that it shouldn't be attained but shouldn't get in the way of economics. Therein lies our current structures that Marx's theories have not only remained relevant, but his criticisms of his time can remain true to this day. Marx's criticism of capitalism was rooted in the exploitation of the worker. As a conflict against the worker, class warfare in effect. In the Marx and Engels Reader, an overview of the writings and theories of Marxism, the ‘realm of freedom’ and ‘realm of necessity’ were heavily elaborated on as it was a new concept at the time. The realm of freedom is a true definition of leisure as it embraces doing activities out of the want, pleasure to do so. Whereas living to survive and work, eat, sleep would be in the realm of necessity. VietnamCombatArtCAT04JamesPollockGICardgame

VietnamCombatArtCAT04JamesPollockGICardgame

Over time, emphasis in studies of leisure has shifted from the work-leisure relation, particularly in well-researched majorities, to study of minorities and the relation between leisure and

. Marshall Gordon noted that there are two approaches in the study of leisure: formal and historical-theoretical. The formal approach focuses on empirical questions, such as the shifting of leisure patterns over an individual's

life cycle Life cycle, life-cycle, or lifecycle may refer to: Science and academia *Biological life cycle, the sequence of life stages that an organism undergoes from birth to reproduction ending with the production of the offspring * Life-cycle hypothesis ...

, the relation between leisure and work, and specific forms of leisure (such as the

sociology of sport Sociology of sport, alternately referred to as sports sociology, is a sub-discipline of sociology which focuses on sports as social phenomena. It is an area of study concerned with the relationship between sociology and sports, and also various s ...

). The historical-theoretical approach studies the relation between leisure and

social change Social change is the alteration of the social order of a society which may include changes in social institutions, social behaviours or social relations. Definition Social change may not refer to the notion of social progress or socio ...

, often from structural-functionalist and

neo-Marxist Neo-Marxism is a Marxist school of thought encompassing 20th-century approaches that amend or extend Marxism and Marxist theory, typically by incorporating elements from other intellectual traditions such as critical theory, psychoanalysis, or exi ...

perspectives. Sheila Scraton provided a different analysis, comparing North American and

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

studies. The British approaches focus on input from pluralism, critical Marxism, and

feminism Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social equality of the sexes. Feminism incorporates the position that society prioritizes the male po ...

; the American approaches concentrate on the social-psychological tradition. Rhona and Robert Rapoport studied the worklife balance and inequality in many countries, wrote many books in this area and help influence policy and legislation to change practices.

Findings

Many sociologists have assumed that a given type of leisure activity is most easily explained by

socioeconomic Socioeconomics (also known as social economics) is the social science that studies how economic activity affects and is shaped by social processes. In general it analyzes how modern societies progress, stagnate, or regress because of their l ...

variables such as

income Income is the consumption and saving opportunity gained by an entity within a specified timeframe, which is generally expressed in monetary terms. Income is difficult to define conceptually and the definition may be different across fields. Fo ...

occupation Occupation commonly refers to: *Occupation (human activity), or job, one's role in society, often a regular activity performed for payment *Occupation (protest), political demonstration by holding public or symbolic spaces *Military occupation, th ...

education Education is a purposeful activity directed at achieving certain aims, such as transmitting knowledge or fostering skills and character traits. These aims may include the development of understanding, rationality, kindness, and honesty ...

. This has yielded fewer results than expected; income is associated with total money spent on such activities, but otherwise only determines what type of activities are affordable. Occupation has a similar effect, because most occupations heavily influence a person's income (for example, membership in a prestigious occupation and " country-club" activities such as golf or sailing are significantly

correlated In statistics, correlation or dependence is any statistical relationship, whether causal or not, between two random variables or bivariate data. Although in the broadest sense, "correlation" may indicate any type of association, in statistic ...

—but so is membership in those occupations and high income, and those activities with high cost). Education is correlated with having a wide range of leisure activities, and with higher dedication to them. As Kelly noted, "Predicting a person's leisure behavior on the basis of his socioeconomic position is all but impossible." On the other hand, type of leisure activity is substantially influenced by the individual's immediate situation—whether he has a family, whether there are recreational facilities nearby, and age. Early family influences, particularly involving the more social leisure activities, can be profound. The type of leisure activity also depends on the individual's current place in the

. Within the framework of the family, leisure time has been researched to measure the effect of families during weekend work. What was found was families in which parents had to work on the weekend had a negative effect on the family, more particularly the children. It was written that many of the parents who had to work on the weekend were less educated and had lower income. This could have implications for the family and society. Specific findings in sociological studies of leisure are illustrated by John Robinson's late-1970s study of American leisure. Robinson found that Americans, on average, have four hours of leisure time each weekday, and more on weekends—six hours on Saturdays, almost eight on Sundays. Amount of leisure time diminishes with age, work, marriage, and children. However, the amount of free time does not significantly depend on an individual's wealth. People desire less free time if they are uncertain of their economic future, or if their job is their central interest. During the second half of the twentieth century, watching

television Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertisin ...

became a major leisure activity, causing a substantial decrease in the time dedicated to other activities; in the early 1970s the average American had 4 hours of leisure per day, and spent 1.5 of them watching television.J. Robinson and P. Converse, "Social Change Reflected in the Use of Time," in A. Campbell and P. Converse, eds., ''The Human Meaning of Social Change'', New York, Russell Sage, 1972, pp. 17–86. Shared leisure activities increase marital satisfaction. There are different forms of leisure time and their benefits are not always clear, but generally, there is consensus that in moderation, they tend to have various positive effects. For example, going to the movies, alone or with friends can improve health and well-being.

Pay, work and leisure

Individuals make trade-offs between pay, work and leisure. However, the timing and scale of those trade-offs varies with the occupations and incomes of individuals. They also vary over time and from society to society. In societies, substantial across the board rises in pay can increase the working hours of male blue-collar workers with young children but reduce those of middle class women with husbands in well-paid full-time jobs. Abbott, Lewis F. ''Theories of the Labour Market and Employment: A Review'', ISR/Google Books, 2013,2020. Chapter 6, "Educational, Family and Leisure Influences",, pages 175,176.

Notes

a There were few sociological studies of leisure before the second half of the 20th century. One of the earliest and most celebrated was

Thorstein Veblen Thorstein Bunde Veblen (July 30, 1857 – August 3, 1929) was a Norwegian-American economist and sociologist who, during his lifetime, emerged as a well-known critic of capitalism. In his best-known book, ''The Theory of the Leisure Class'' ...

's ''

The Theory of the Leisure Class ''The Theory of the Leisure Class: An Economic Study of Institutions'' (1899), by Thorstein Veblen, is a treatise of economics and sociology, and a critique of conspicuous consumption as a function of social class and of consumerism, which are ...

'' (1899).

References

External links

Journal of Leisure Research

Leisure Studies
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sociology of Leisure Sociology of leisure Leisure