Date of Award

2001

Document Type

Thesis

Publisher

Edith Cowan University

Degree Name

Bachelor of Arts Honours

Faculty

Faculty of Community Services, Education and Social Sciences

First Supervisor

Alison Garton

Abstract

It has been claimed by many that the family environment is a source of influence for child and adolescent behaviour (Hendry, 1983). Research questions were asked to find out if, and to what extent, the family environment {as perceived by the adolescent) determines the adolescent's leisure participation, with whom these pursuits are carried out, and the satisfaction gained from these pursuits. Questionnaires containing measures of leisure participation, with whom they participate, and leisure satisfaction plus the Family Environment Scale (FES) Form R were administered to 313 students between 13 to 16 years of age in a Perth metropolitan state high school. In light of the results, several conclusions were warranted. (1) The extent to which the family, and other social groups (such as peers) can facilitate the satisfaction of the adolescent's leisure needs, will determine how much of the adolescent's leisure time is spent with the family, with friends, in a group, or alone. The extent to which the family can facilitate the satisfaction of the adolescent's leisure needs will depend on how it is perceived by the adolescent (that is. as an Authoritative, Indulgent, Authoritarian, or Neglecting family environment). (2) That adolescents do not spend an amount of time in leisure activities that is relative to the amount of satisfaction they gain from them. (3) That adolescents prefer to participate in leisure activities that satisfy their need to relax and relieve stress (and all types of leisure had this capability). Lastly, (4) gender is a consistent predictor of the types of leisure activities adolescents will prefer to participate in.

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