Beyond Surveillance toward Prevention of Injury and Illness at Camps

Camps have a long history of contributing to positive developmental outcomes for campers and staff. When illness or injury occurs at camp, however, the positive outcomes of the experience can be diminished. Therefore, surveillance and prevention are essential. This national study of camps provided a benchmark for assessing adverse risk factors at camp. The findings have resulted in initial steps to develop training materials to lower the incidence of injury and illness. Other opportunities that might be considered to further the value of surveillance studies might include: continuing to monitor staff as well as campers, assessing the severity of injuries, developing additional training modules, facilitating data collection and analyses in individual camps, exploring the influence of demographics and accreditation, and developing systems to monitor mental and emotional health in camps

Components of Camp Experiences for Positive Youth Development

Youth development specialists advocate that well designed, implemented, and staffed youth centered programs result in positive outcomes for young people. Youth organizations have provided opportunities for young people to participate in camping experiences for over a century. The purpose of this paper is to describe what program components were related to camp environments and positive youth development. We describe these program components related to positive youth development based on a large scale national study of ACA (American Camp Association) accredited camps that included independent, religiously affiliated, government, and not-for-profit organizations. Based on the responses given by camp directors, contact and leadership from trained staff and the supportive relationships they provided were essential elements of camp. Other aspects leading to positive youth development in camps were program mission and structure along with elements of accountability, assessment of outcomes, and opportunities for skill building

The Status of Evaluation in ACA Accredited Camping Programs

The purpose of this descriptive evaluation project was to determine the current status of evaluation in American Camping Association accredited camps. Both qualitative and quantitative data were collected from a systematic random sample of camps. The results showed that camp directors placed emphasis on evaluations for helping them improve various aspects of the camp related to staff, program, facilities, and/or administration

Optimal Experience among Campers in a Resident Camp Setting

The purpose of this exploratory study was to assess optimal experience, also known as flow and quality of experience, in a resident camp setting. Campers from a private coeducational children\u27s camp in the southeastern United States were asked to record descriptions of their involvement, attitudes, and feelings during randomly selected times during two camp sessions in 1991. The research questions addressed were: How do experiences associated with a quality of experience and flow occur in the resident camp setting? How frequently do they occur? What implications does an understanding of flow have for providing better camp experience.,? Based on this exploratory study which consisted of data from 910 experiences from 47 campers, several conclusions were drawn

Introduction [International handbook of outdoor studies]

This international compilation brings together current leading scholars in outdoor studies from a variety of disciplines to bring to readers principal ideas and leading-edge developments. We also draw together the strands of outdoor studies into one volume, making the important connections among key threads including education, leisure, physical culture, sport, the outdoor environment and practice

An Exploration of Camp Directors\u27 Affective Connection to Nature and Camp Programming

Organized camping has a long history of providing outdoor recreation and environmental education. Louv\u27s (2005) charge that organized camping has shifted away from tradition raises many questions. This study focuses on the role and influence of camp directors on nature opportunities for children within the camp environment. Camp directors set the tone for camp through communication of the mission and philosophy, and managerial decision-making that influences the organization, daily operation, staffing, and programming options of a particular camp (Ball & Ball, 2004). If programming shifts, as Louv suggested, it requires the sanction and leadership of camp directors. Given the findings of previous research regarding the relationship between affect and decision ­making and behavior coupled with Louv\u27s (2005) charge that the nature of organized camping has changed, we explored (a) How connected to nature do camp directors today feel? (b) Do opportunities for children to have direct experiences with nature differ at camps of directors who feel a strong personal connection to nature compared to those camp directors who feel less connection? and (c) Is the influence of camp directors\u27 affective connection to nature strong enough to account for differences in programming related to the provision of opportunities for children to directly experience nature

Components of Camp Experiences for Positive Youth Development

Youth development specialists advocate that well designed, implemented, and staffed youth centered programs result in positive outcomes for young people. Youth organizations have provided opportunities for young people to participate in camping experiences for over a century. The purpose of this paper is to describe what program components were related to camp environments and positive youth development. We describe these program components related to positive youth development based on a large scale national study of ACA (American Camp Association) accredited camps that included independent, religiously affiliated, government, and not-for-profit organizations. Based on the responses given by camp directors, contact and leadership from trained staff and the supportive relationships they provided were essential elements of camp. Other aspects leading to positive youth development in camps were program mission and structure along with elements of accountability, assessment of outcomes, and opportunities for skill building

Camp Research: What? So What? What’s Next?

This special issue of the Journal of Youth Development provides a means to highlight where camp research is today based on the articles presented. Several common areas are identified: role of theory, addressing social issues, methodological imagination, emerging audiences, samples, linking operations and outcomes research, staff and youth development, moving outcomes from what to how, and thoughtful and intentional implications for practice. Areas that need additional consideration in future camp research and issues that can be addressed by camp professionals include further examining how positive change occurs in camp, noting the value of the transfer of camp experiences to later life, using critical analyses of what camp experiences mean, and examining areas that have been under-researched such as day camps

An Integrative Review of Youth Development Research in Selected United States Recreation Journals

Youth have been a focus of recreation and leisure programmers for over a century. During that time, assumptions have been made about the value of recreation for young people. More recently, a resurgence of interest has occurred related to positive youth development. The purpose of this paper is to describe the results of an integrative review done to examine research conducted with youth as a focal point in four prominent U.S. based recreation journals over the past 21 years (1985-2005). We sought to discern thematic patterns in topical areas and to review the approaches and methods used. Systematic content and thematic analyses of the Journal of Park and Recreation Administration, Therapeutic Recreation Journal, Leisure Sciences, and the Journal of Leisure Research were used. Findings showed that the research done about youth related to some aspect of recreation or leisure in the past ten years eclipsed what was done from 1985-1996. A variety of research methods were used with an equitable distribution of survey, literature reviews, experimental designs, and qualitative methods. The youth examined were primarily mixed gender groups, but boys were twice as likely to be studied as girls when single sex studies were undertaken. Most of the research was done with adolescent (ages 10-18 years) youth. Almost no research has been done in the recreation field related to early childhood (ages 1-4 years). The 11 major themes or topics that were studied in the past 21 years included: youth culture and leisure; leisure programming, treatment, and intervention; research, measurement, and evaluation; demographic factors; management, administration, and policy of youth programs; benefits of leisure for youth; youth and family leisure; recreation settings and leisure spaces; risk behaviors and delinquency; human development and developmental issues; and social behavior. In the integrative review, the focus on benefits and accountability relative to youth programs was obvious. The parallels between social change and youth development were also evident in the review. Recommendations for future research include more evidence-based work that links the program or intervention directly to youth development outcomes, as well as a focus on emerging topics such as physical inactivity and obesity in children, the influence of television and technology in general, youth sport, and the relationships youth have with nature and the outdoors

Outcomes of Camping: Perceptions from Camper Focus Groups

The Recreation and Leisure Studies De­partment at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill (UNC-CH) and Morry\u27s Camp are working together to develop an evaluation re­search plan that blends appropriate measurement tools with assessing desired outcomes. Several methodological techniques are in place to gather qualitative and. quantitative longitudinal data from Morry\u27s Camp. This paper, however, will focus on one set of qualitative results gathered from three exploratory focus groups conducted with campers. The purpose of this paper is to describe the match between the camp\u27s objec­tives and the valued aspects of the camp experi­ence as articulated by the campers. Our intent is to offer camps interested in validating outcomes an example of one method of qualitative data collection, analysis, and interpretation. The paper also relates the Morry\u27s Camp findings to the professional literature surrounding youth from at-risk communities, resiliency, protective fac­tors, and youth developmen