Investigating the Delivery of Therapeutic Recreation Services on the Internet: a Pilot Study Using Leisure Education for the Prevention of Alcohol Abuse (open access)

Investigating the Delivery of Therapeutic Recreation Services on the Internet: a Pilot Study Using Leisure Education for the Prevention of Alcohol Abuse

This pilot study, grounded in social learning theory, demonstrated that leisure education services can be delivered on the Internet. Participants (n=40) successfully accessed the Web page program and responded to instruments and surveys. The treatment group (n=16) effectively completed four leisure education sessions on-line. Confidentiality, privacy, and anonymity issues were controlled. Responses were monitored and feedback provided as to the complexity of the program and comprehension of the participants. The leisure education program had no significant effect on posttest measures of alcohol expectancies and leisure motivations. Mean changes frompretest to posttest may indicate trends. The small n and convenience sample may have introduced many extraneous variables. Professional implications include compliance issues (57% experimental mortality rate), technology-related anxiety, and limited professional competency to work in this environment. Future research which examines the provision of leisure education and other components of therapeutic recreation service on-line is warranted.
Date: December 1998
Creator: Mainville, Sylvie
System: The UNT Digital Library