The Benefits of Leisure in the Sport Management Field

Throughout time, leisure has been an important aspect of people's lives. Leisure can be described as a specific activity that takes place during free time and the experience that comes from this activity. Leisure is important in the development and fulfillment of people's lives. It has even been suggested that an individual's leisure may have more impact on the quality of life than any other area of behavior and experience. The field of Sport Management offers a wide variety of leisure activities and experiences that provide people with the numerous benefits of leisure. A practitioner in the sports management field can implement the major benefits of leisure theories through activities like sports camps, retired adult tennis leagues, and organized basketball leagues for home schooled children.

Psychological benefits of leisure play an important role in the development and strengthening of a person's life. These benefits can be broken down into seven distinct theories. The "Keeping Idle Hands Busy" theory states that people are thought to be happiest or at least mentally healthy when they are busy. Having unoccupied time available is assumed to be psychologically and behaviorally risky for some people, resulting in a state of boredom and/or participation in destructive activities. For example, juvenile delinquency is often seen to be a result of kids having too much free time available with no socially accepted leisure alternatives available, which leads to boredom and consequently the engaging in harmful activities like drug use. The "Psychological Hedonism" theory suggests that through the participation in leisure people experience pleasure, relaxation, and fun. Pleasure, relaxation, and fun are important criteria in the choosing of a leisure activity. Hedonism suggests that people act in a certain way in order to seek pleasure and avoid pain, so they can "spice up" their overall well-being.