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

An Integrative Review of the Literature on Women in the Outdoors

The intent of this integrative re­view was to examine approaches used in the existing literature about women and the outdoors, to determine the status of current research, and to suggest implica­tions for the future

Methods, Measures, and Madness: Possiblities for Outdoor Education Research

In this keynote presentation, the authors outlined the Top Ten Reasons Why We Need More and Better Outdoor Education Research Methods and Measures as the basis for our further discussion

Summary of the Human/Environmental Interaction Discussion

Summarizes the group discussion held following Bardwell\u27s keynote on The Restorative Experience and Outdoor Education

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

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

Trends and Issues in Not for Profit Camping

The purpose of this study was to examine in­fluences on not for profit agencies involved in camping programs to determine critical trends and issues related to organized camping. The American Camping Association (ACA) Not for Profit Forum and Council funded this study. The project consisted of three data collection phases: 1) an extensive literature review; 2) a survey sent to a random sample of camp directors and their not for profit agency executives; and 3) focus groups conducted at a national ACA con­ference. This descriptive research study uses information from the second phase of this pro­ject to present quantitative data about percep­tions of the trends and issues in not for profit camping

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