Leisure Time, Technology Time or Both, That is the Question?

Date of Award

Spring 2015

Document Type

Thesis

First Advisor

Rebecca Overmyer-Velazquez

Abstract

The changing relationship between technology and leisure time has created a structural shift in daily life today. Though leisure time and technology are both broad topics technology in this study refers to any electronic devices such as televisions, phones, computers, ipods, and electronic games. Leisure time is generally defined as an enjoyable activity removed from the workplace (Giordano 2003 p. xiii) whereas the opposite of leisure is an activity done for pay or profit (Kleemeier 1961 p. 15), also known as work. In the beginning of the 20th century main leisure activities were considered sports, drinking, gambling, and play outside at parks; however, towards the end of the century leisure activities included radio and movies. Work and leisure have typically been understood as two different areas of time, however; increasing technology use prompts the questions asked in this study: how is leisure and work time affected by technology for students, staff, and faculty at Whittier College? This quantitative study uses 133 surveys to understand how participants perceive leisure and technology time. The study is limited by the small amount of participants meaning, generalizations to the larger U. S. population cannot be made. The research found that 84% of participants use technology while doing work, thus blurring the line between leisure and work time. With the blurred line, the idea that technology is constantly in people’s lives and needed, has re-defined leisure once again.

Comments

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