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Leisure and Subjective Well-Being: A Model of Psychological Mechanisms as Mediating Factors

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Abstract

Leisure is a key life domain and a core ingredient for overall well-being. Yet, within positive psychology, its definition and the psychological pathways by which it evokes happiness are elusive (Diener and Biswas-Diener 2008). In this paper, we seek to address these issues by delineating leisure and presenting a conceptual framework linking leisure to subjective well-being (SWB). Leisure is defined as a multidimensional construct, encompassing both structural and subjective aspects. Respectively, it is the amount of activity/time spent outside of obligated work time and/or perceived engagement in leisure as subjectively defined. To explain the effects of leisure on SWB, a quantitative summary of theories from 363 research articles linking leisure and SWB was conducted. Based on our findings, we propose five core psychological mechanisms that leisure potentially triggers to promote leisure SWB: detachment-recovery, autonomy, mastery, meaning, and affiliation (DRAMMA). These psychological mechanisms promote leisure SWB which leads to enhanced global SWB through a bottom-up theory of SWB. We discuss how future research can use this conceptual model for understanding the interplay between leisure and SWB.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, College of William and Mary, P.O. Box 8795, Williamsburg, VA, 23187-8795, USA

    David B. Newman

  2. Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, USA

    Louis Tay

  3. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and The Gallup Organization, Omaha, NE, USA

    Ed Diener

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  1. David B. Newman
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  2. Louis Tay
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  3. Ed Diener
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Correspondence to David B. Newman.

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Newman, D.B., Tay, L. & Diener, E. Leisure and Subjective Well-Being: A Model of Psychological Mechanisms as Mediating Factors. J Happiness Stud 15, 555–578 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10902-013-9435-x

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