ERIC Number: EJ1168193
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2017
Pages: 20
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1948-5123
EISSN: N/A
An Investigation of the Connection between Outdoor Orientation and Thriving
Rude, Wally James; Bobilya, Andrew J.; Bell, Brent J.
Journal of Outdoor Recreation, Education, and Leadership, v9 n2 p197-216 2017
This study explored the contribution of outdoor orientation experiences to student thriving. Participants included 295 first-year college students from three institutions across North America. A thriving model was tested using structural equation modeling and included the following variables: outdoor orientation, thriving, involvement, spirituality, psychological sense of community, student-faculty interaction, and control variables. Although the predictive importance of outdoor orientation is modest (ß = 0.048), it contributes significantly to a model explaining 72.8% of the variance in thriving levels. Outdoor orientation directly predicted campus involvement (ß = 0.246) and spirituality (ß = -0.146). Findings indicate that participating in an outdoor orientation may create a propensity for students to become more involved in campus life, which may foster a greater sense of campus community, culminating in thriving. These results suggest that practitioners should enhance both a psychological sense of community among students and the durability of outdoor experiences back on campus.
Descriptors: Outdoor Education, Well Being, College Freshmen, Structural Equation Models, Psychological Patterns, Teacher Student Relationship, Predictor Variables, Student Participation, Spiritual Development, Program Effectiveness, Success, Social Support Groups, Interpersonal Competence, Student Adjustment, Racial Differences, Ethnicity, High School Students, Grades (Scholastic), Majors (Students), Enrollment, On Campus Students, Selective Admission, Student Surveys, Statistical Analysis
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A