The purpose of this qualitative study is to examine whether engagement in a serious leisure activity provided older adults opportunities for successful aging. Data were collected through in-depth interviews at shag dance festivals in North Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. To provide structure for the interview, a general interview guide consisting of open-ended questions was used. A total of 31 interviews were conducted with 25 individuals and 6 couples, between 60 and 82 years of age. During the analysis stage, the constant comparative method was used to analyze the data. Themes that emerged support the idea that shag dancing is a form of serious leisure for older adults and support the role of serious leisure in successful aging. The narratives provided by the informants illustrate the powerful role serious leisure can play in an individual's life and point toward the value of serious leisure as an approach that holds promise for recreators working to help older individuals experience successful aging.

No abstract

This study develops and tests a model of self-expressiveness in sport tourism, defined as the extent to which a tourist perceives that a sport activity is reflective of his or her personal identity. Self-expressiveness in a sport activity experienced by a tourist should depend on the activity’s perceived difficulty, perceived effort, perceived importance, and potential for self-realization. In turn, a tourist’s self-expressiveness in a sport activity should exert a positive influence on the tourist’s experience of personal happiness (subjective well-being). The results of two surveys involving 1,251 travelers who participated in a dance festival (study 1) and ski activities (study 2) during their vacations confirm the hypotheses, revealing several interesting theoretical and managerial implications.

Methods for groundwater sampling have evolved over time. This evolution has been driven by changing theories on how to obtain representative aquifer water samples. Passive sampling is a fairly recent method that relies on the natural flushing capacity of a well to obtain representative samples. The use of diffusion samplers is one method of passive sampling and works well under certain conditions. As part of a 2-year study to determine the temporal variability and trends in concentrations of volatile organic compounds (VOC's) in a large plume (0.5 mi2 area) of contaminated ground water in a glacial-drift aquifer, results of VOC analyses of samples collected with diffusion bag samplers were compared with those of samples collected with other types of samplers. The area of study is the primary source area of the large VOC plume and is located adjacent to a a river that losses flow and recharges the aquifer. The concentrations of VOC's, primarily tetrachloroethylene (PCE), trichloroethylene (TCE), and cw-l,2-dichloroethene (cw-l,2DCE), in samples collected with diffusion samplers show a strong positive linear correlation (root-mean square error of 0.94 and above) with concentrations from purged samples following low-flow sampling procedures. A total of 20 coupled diffusion and peristaltic-pump samples were collected from 7 wells completed in high-permeability glacial-drift. The mean concentration of PCE in the diffusion samples was 1,152 parts per billion (ppb) and the mean from the peristalticpump samples was 1,119 ppb. The standard deviations also were similar. The mean concentrations of TCE were slightly higher in diffusion samples (89.2 ppb) than peristaltic-pump samples (75.4 ppb). The mean concentration of cw-l,2DCE in diffusion samples (95.0 ppb) was virtually identical to the mean in peristaltic-pump samples. Although VOC concentrations changed dramatically at several wells over the sampled period, trends in VOC's detected using diffusion samplers corresponded with trends in VOC's from other lowflow sampling methods. For example, at two wells where coupled diffusion and peristaltic-pump samples were collected, VOC concentrations varied by a half order of magnitude over a two-month period. Although the diffusion sampler was installed and left in the well for the entire period, VOC concentrations in the diffusion sampler at the time of retrieval generally matched those in the instantaneous samples collected with the peristaltic pump on the same day, suggesting relatively rapid equilibration of the diffusion sampler to VOC concentrations in the well. The use of diffusion samplers allowed for the understanding of contaminant transport conditions at the study site because it allowed for an increase in the frequency of sampling without an associated increase in labor cost. For example, spatially variable declines in PCE concentrations were identified over the two-year study that are related to spatial variations in sediment lithology and the location of the plume within the groundwater flow system. Wells screened ...

Today wine tourism is emerging as an important component of rural diversification in North Carolina. Using Stebbins’ (1992) model of serious leisure as a guideline, the purpose of this study is to explore how wine tourism may be viewed as a type of serious leisure and to suggest a conceptual approach to the study of wine consumers in order to develop effective wine marketing strategies for local wineries in North Carolina. In addition, this study suggests an approach that small North Carolina wineries might use to identify various types of winery visitors and better position their products.