Refining measures of adventure recreation involvement

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to further our understanding of adventure recreation by expanding on the work of Ewert and Hollenhorst (1989). In this study, level of enduring involvement of Whitewater kayaking participants was the dependent variable, frequency of participation, skill level, experience, social orientation, environmental preference, psychological outcomes, perceived risk, locus of control, and sensation seeking were the independent variables. The level of enduring involvement was predicted by skill level, psychological outcomes, gender, frequency of participation, and perceived risk. This article relates development of measures and operationalization of variables. These findings have implications for developing future adventure recreation behavior models and for understanding the social and psychological aspects of Whitewater kayaking.

Keywords:

• adventure recreation
• involvement measures
• risk recreation
• Whitewater kayaking