1. 2
Chapter 2
Basic Concepts: Philosophical Analysis of Play, Recreation, and Leisure

2. Objectives
Define, compare, and contrast play, recreation, and leisure.
Provide an overview of play theories.
Discuss the psychology of play.
Identify the six views of leisure as presented in the text.
Discuss the interrelationship between play, recreation, and leisure.

3. The Meaning of Play
A form of human or animal activity or behavioral style that is self-motivated and carried on for intrinsic, rather than external, purposes.
Often is marked by elements of competition, humor, creative exploration and problem solving, and mimicry or role playing.

4. The Meaning of Play (cont’d)
Historical perspectives
Greece: Play has valuable role in the lives of children.
Catholic Church: Play comes to be regarded as a social threat.
Body thought to detract from spiritual values
Effort to curb pleasure pursuits
Educators and philosophers defend play.
Important aspect of childhood education

5. Early Theories of Play Surplus-energy theory: Herbert Spencer
Play is motivated by the need to burn up excess energy.
Does not account for nonphysical play.
Does not account for play in people with low levels of energy.

6. Early Theories of Play (cont’d)
Relaxation theory
Converse to surplus-energy theory.
Play restores energy.
Play reenergizes physical and mental energy.
Play relaxes individuals.

7. Early Theories of Play (cont’d)
Preparation theory
Play helps children practice adult life.
Play helps children learn teamwork and role playing.
Does not account for adult play.

8. Early Theories of Play (cont’d)
Catharsis theory
Play serves as a safety valve for bottled up emotions.
Play provides an acceptable channel for expression of aggression or hostility.
Helps burn excess energy.

9. Twentieth-Century Concepts of Play
Self-expression theory
Play as a need for self-expression.
Play allows people to use their abilities and express their personalities.
Activities influenced by physiological and anatomic structure, physical fitness level, environment, and family and social background.

10. Twentieth-Century Concepts of Play (cont’d)
Play as a social necessity: Joseph Lee
Play as a force in child development and community life.
Need for organized play opportunities that served as an alternative to the difficult life children living in poverty faced on the streets.
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11. Twentieth-Century Concepts of Play (cont’d)
Typologies of play activity
Classification characteristic of various cultures: Caillois
Agon: competitive activities
Alea: games of chance
Mimicry: make-believe, role playing
Ilinx: pursuit of vertigo or dizziness

12. Twentieth-Century Concepts of Play (cont’d)
Contrasting styles of play
Paidia: exuberance, freedom, gaiety
Ludus: rules and conventions; represents calculated and contrived activity

13. Twentieth-Century Concepts of Play (cont’d)
Play element in culture: Johan Huizinga
Play pervades all of life, with its own ethical value.
War as play.
Play in the business world.

14. Psychological Analysis of Play
Play in personality development
Play prompts enjoyment, freedom, fun, self-expression, creativity, self confidence.
Play allows children to learn to interact with others through cooperative, sharing, and conflict-resolution activities.

15. Psychological Analysis of Play (cont’d)
Psychoanalytical perspectives on play
Method to gain control and competence.
Play represents the child's way of dealing with reality.
By playing, reality becomes more acceptable and allows the child to gain mastery over threatening events.

16. Psychological Analysis of Play (cont’d)
Play as creative exploration
Stimulus-arousal theory
Humans and animals seek stimuli for knowledge, excitement, risk, surprise, and pleasure.
Stimuli seeking can be positive or negative.
Light, enjoyable, pleasant
Frustrating, boring, unpleasant

17. Psychological Analysis of Play (cont’d)
Play as creative exploration
Competence-effectance theory
Motivated by the need of the player to test the environment, solve problems, and gain a sense of mastery and accomplishment.
Cziksentmihalyi's “flow” principle.

18. The Meaning of Leisure: Six Views
Classical value
Activity performed for its own sake.
Sharply contrasted with work.
Pursuits such as art, political debate, philosophical discussion, and learning in general.
Leisure is the absence of work.

19. The Meaning of Leisure: Six Views (cont’d)
Leisure as a symbol of social class: Veblen
Leisure became the hallmark of the upper class.
Changed as working class grew in size.
Upper class still participate in a wide variety of expensive, prestigious, and sometimes decadent leisure activities.

20. The Meaning of Leisure: Six Views (cont’d)
Leisure as unobligated time
Time free from work or work-related responsibilities.
Excludes time devoted to essential life-maintenance activities and other obligations.
Contemporary Americans feel increased time pressure.

21. The Meaning of Leisure: Six Views (cont’d)
Leisure as activity
Leisure closely related to recreation and activity.
Makes little allowance for low-activity leisure pursuits.
Feminist critiques focus on irrelevance of work/leisure dichotomy.

22. The Meaning of Leisure: Six Views (cont’d)
Leisure as a state marked by freedom
Perceived freedom of the activity.
Leisure as promoting personal fulfillment and self-enrichment.
Leisure as part of a holistic lifestyle.

23. The Meaning of Leisure: Six Views (cont’d)
Leisure as spiritual expression
Leisure is an important means of spiritual expression.
Spirituality emerges in leisure through nature, mediation, relaxation, and other activities.

24. The Meaning of Leisure: Six Views (cont’d)
Leisure defined
Implies freedom and choice. Customarily used in a variety of ways, including to meet one’s personal needs for reflection, self-enrichment, relaxation, pleasure, and affiliation.
May be regarded as a holistic state of being and/or spiritual experience.

25. The Meaning of Recreation
Recreation represents a fusion between play and leisure.
Recreation: that which refreshes or restores.
Holds the potential for being pleasant, rewarding, and creative.
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26. Contemporary Definitions of Recreation
Three categories of recreation:
As an activity
As a state of being
As a social institution

27. Contemporary Definitions of Recreation (cont’d)
Elements of recreation:
Activity
Excludes idleness and complete rest
Voluntary involvement
Internal motivation
Dependent on state of mind
Purpose is pleasure seeking

28. Contemporary Definitions of Recreation (cont’d)
Voluntary participation
Generally recreation is viewed as voluntary and without obligation.
Teams, leagues, and pressures from family or friends reduce the voluntary nature of recreation.

29. Contemporary Definitions of Recreation (cont’d)
Motives for participation
Often goal-oriented.
Murphy identified these following types of behaviors:
Socializing behaviors
Associative behaviors
Competitive behaviors
Risk-taking behaviors
Exploratory behaviors

30. Contemporary Definitions of Recreation (cont’d)
Motives for participation
Other motives:
Vicarious experiences
Sensory stimulation
Physical involvement
Intellectual pursuits

31. Contemporary Definitions of Recreation (cont’d)
Recreation as an outcome
Recreation viewed in terms of benefit it provides.
Leisure researchers have studied social-psychological outcomes of participation.
Contemporary interest in relationship between recreation and health outcomes.

32. Contemporary Definitions of Recreation (cont’d)
Recreation as a social institution
Significant institution in the community.
Public, nonprofit, commercial services providers.
Professional associations and degree programs emerged.

33. Contemporary Definitions of Recreation (cont’d)
Recreation defined
Human activities or experiences that occur in leisure time.
Usually, they are voluntarily chosen for intrinsic purposes and are pleasurable, although they may involve a degree of compulsion, extrinsic purpose, and discomfort, or even pain or danger.

34. Relationships Among Play, Leisure, and Recreation
Play is more a form of behavior than activity.
Play can occur during work or leisure.
Recreation has broader applications and can be provided by agencies that do not have recreation as a primary focus.
Armed forces, businesses
Recreation can include nonplay-like activities.
Traveling, reading, going to museums
Leisure is more abstract, focus of research by many different disciplines.