Date of Award
5-2015
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
Legacy Department
Parks, Recreation, and Tourism Management
Committee Chair/Advisor
Dr. William C. Norman
Committee Member
Dr. Jeffrey C. Hallo
Committee Member
Dr. Kenneth L. Robinson
Committee Member
Dr. William C. Wentworth
Abstract
Social worlds are a distinct form of human organization in which individuals organize themselves by using communication channels to spread knowledge and culture around a shared interest. Over the past thirty years, the leisure sciences have increasingly used the social world vernacular to describe population samples of recreation-based groups. While important to the leisure and recreation disciplines, social world vernacular can be confusing, often leading to improper use. This research returns to the original definition of social worlds created by Shibutani and reexamines what social worlds were intended to be in the context of recreation and tourism. By reexamining the original definition of social worlds, the researchers identified three major characteristics and those characteristics’ ability to predict and make comparisons among social worlds and their membership. These characteristics include a social world’s shared culture, shared communication channels, and shared knowledge.
Recommended Citation
Hughes, Matthew D., "Re-conceptualizing Recreation-based Social Worlds" (2015). All Dissertations. 1493.
https://tigerprints.clemson.edu/all_dissertations/1493