The aims of this study were to compare the differences and determine the relationships between the scores obtained from Minnesota job-satisfaction and quality-of-life scales applied to males' ages 18 to 40 who participate in recreational activities and those who do not. The samples of the study consisted of 282 volunteers (148 of whom participate in sports and 134 of whom do not) employed in public institutions and organisations in the City of Vezirköprü in Turkey's Samsun province. The data obtained from the scales and their subscales for the two groups were analysed through the Mann-Whitney U test and Kendall's tau-b, according to the results from a Kolmogorov-Smirnov test for the normality assumption (P<0.05). The results showed that the perceived general life quality and job satisfaction for the individuals participating in sports were higher than those who do not participate (P<0.05). When the associations between life-quality and job-satisfaction total scores of all participants were examined, positive significant associations were found between life-quality total scores and job-satisfaction total scores and sub-scores (intrinsic and extrinsic satisfaction) (P<0.001). In conclusion, it can be said that participation in recreational activities, which are defined for these purposes as organised voluntary physical activities, has a direct influence on individuals' lifestyles and increases their quality of life and job satisfaction significantly.