Women, Wilderness, and Everyday Life: A Documentation of the Connection between Wilderness Recreation and Women's Everyday Lives

Abstract

Past research provides evidence that outdoor recreation can aid in our deconstruction of gender and gender stereotyping (Henderson, Bialeschki, Shaw, & Freysinger, 1996). Outcomes from recreational experiences can transfer into other realms of daily life, resulting in a heightened sense of empowerment and social change for women (Henderson, 1996). Scarce, however, are conceptual frameworks for understanding how and why meaningful changes take place when women experience the outdoors. In examining the connection between wilderness recreation and social change for women, data were collected from twenty-four qualitative interviews with women who recreate in wilderness. Analysis indicated wilderness recreation can influence women's everyday lives in the forms of self-sufficiency, a shift in perspective, connection to others, and mental clarity.

KEYWORDS:

• Women
• wilderness
• recreation
• empowerment
• benefits
• transferable skills
• therapeutic value