This qualitative exploratory research explores meanings that practitioners of adventure activities in nature, who are 60+ years old, attribute to their activities and leisure. The intentionally selected participants were 24 practitioners of adventure activities in nature, in Florianópolis, Brazil. The instruments were a semi-structured interview…

Outdoor recreation has many benefits for youth. Benefits may be more profound in youth with visual impairments as the involvement in outdoor recreation activities provides improved self-determination and socialization. The purpose of this qualitative phenomenological study was to comprehend each participant's lived outdoor recreation experiences,…

Challenge, adventure, and risk in outdoor adventurous education (OAE) have long been recognised as foundational components in the framing of valuable and transformational experiences for participants. Whilst the literature has identified the benefits of these types of learning experiences, what has remained largely absent is an interrogation of…

The purpose of this qualitative phenomenological research study is to examine ethical issues that transpire for practicing ecotherapists. Ten participants share common ethical issues that emerge in their practices and ways they manage them. The research questions for this study are: 1. What are the ethical concerns that emerge most in ecotherapy…

In this study French and Swedish teachers' and principals' opinions and everyday uses of the schoolyard is in focus: What do they perceive as desirable and undesirable in the schoolyard, what similarities and differences exist between the two groups of pedagogues, and how can these be understood? The study employs a cross-cultural design and is…

Outdoor education (OE) is a broad term referring to organized outdoor learning . Given Canada's large size, sparse population, varied landscapes and diverse culture , developing a comprehensive understanding of the philosophies, goals and activities of OE in Canada is challenging. While Canada has a long history of OE, scholars struggle to…

Rock-climbing has become very popular adventure sport across the globe. Researchers have begun to investigate how adventure sport athletes perform in a manner that reduces the likelihood of serious mishap, injury or even death. In this paper, we utilize a collaborative autoethnographic approach to explicate a serious traditional rock-climbing…

The indigenous Riddu Riddu Festival, organized yearly in the village of Olmáivággi/ Manndalen (Sápmi/Norway), presents the cultures of Sámi people and indigenous peoples across the world. A study of the activities offered at Riddu Riddu over an eleven-year period (2009-2019) carried out. Through fieldwork (forty-six in-depth interviews,…

This study was carried out within a project to promote health and ecosystem services, 'the benefits people obtain from ecosystems', in preschools in Sweden. The paper applies the concept 'affordance' to capture the functional meaning that children assign to different material aspects of their schoolyards before and after the installation of…

Distress and discomfort are a part of the US military college experience. Women cadets experience additional challenges including unwelcoming environments, relative isolation, and minority status. A review of the literature shows that wilderness-based experiences offer benefits in the areas of stress-coping, self-efficacy, cognitive function,…

This article explores the activity of canyoning in the natural territory of the Mercantour National Park (France). The investigation refers to the sociology of logics of action to understand the disparity of its development. The 85 canyons are explored according to their interest and their use. The interviews conducted with professionals and other…

The aim of this article is to determine the perceptions and experiences of climbing at artificial climbing walls (ACWs) as undertaken by a cohort of 'young-old' people (approximately 65-75 years). The engagement of older people in outdoor activities and adventure is an evolving topic; however, as part of this development, little has been written…

The purpose of this study was to investigate the experience of participating in outdoor expeditions over the lifespan. Thirteen participants (six female, seven male), aged 50-71 were interviewed using photo-elicitation interviews. Criterion-based sampling attempted to provide a cross sectional representation of outdoor expedition participants.…

This paper considers the significance of exploring the experiences and perspectives of older people who choose to participate in nature-based physical activities in evocative and imaginative ways. It highlights the need for research in outdoor studies to take seriously the turn to the body and the senses that is occurring in much social science…

This paper explores how people aged 50 and over, who were returning to cycling as part of an 8-week health and well-being trial, created their own cycling microadventures. Applying a stage model of the process of adventure to qualitative data generated from personal diaries and focus groups, we examine how older people anticipated and prepared for…