LEIS 3360

Reflections on the twentieth century reveal tremendous changes in the way people live. These changes have impacted work, family structure, and mental and physical well-being, and signal the importance and need of opportunities for leisure pursuits. Leisure is one of life's greatest gifts — an important dimension influencing the quality of an individual's life. Similarly, leisure enhances the quality of life available to a society or culture. The growth of the leisure industry reflects the ever increasing value that individuals are placing upon leisure in their lives. It is essential for the student of recreation management to know and understand that leisure delivery and life satisfaction are dependent upon effective organizational analysis and the quality of services provided. This course presents historical and contemporary concepts of the diverse types of agencies and institutions providing leisure services in North America. It will review the nature and effectiveness of services provided by various leisure service agencies in the private, private non-profit, commercial recreation, travel and tourism sectors of the leisure industry. It will seek to (a) evaluate the political, social, physical and economic impact on each of the sectors, (b) determine ways of assessing the assurance of quality service delivery, and (c) find ways of motivating improvements in the identifying and meeting of consumers' leisure needs, today and in the future. Consideration is also given to organizational structure and governance within leisure service settings, and the incorporation of the “benefits based approach” to leisure service delivery.