Leisure in three Middle Eastern countries

Leisure and quality of life in an international and multicultural context: what are major pathways linking leisure to quality of life?

“…In fact, the above review of literature presented is filled with a number of culturally relevant examples to suggest that social and environmental connections developed through leisure contribute to meaning-making and life-quality-enhancement. For example, besides the central role of family ties in various cultural contexts (e.g., Middle-East; Martin and Mason, 2003), Wang and Stringer (2000) described that Taoism, which strongly influences the lives of many Chinese people including leisure, values a close connection to the nature, holistic wellness, arts, literature, cultural celebrations, and spiritual tourism (e.g., visits to Taoist temples). Also, Sharma (2002) indicated that maintaining the harmony among the body (action), mind (thought), and awareness (spirit) is essential in yoga to experience ''true self,'' while a positive significant association between participation in yoga and QOL was found in Damodaran et al's (2002) study in Bombay, India.…”

“…While this pattern of leisure is still dominant, a relatively affluent urban middle class has developed in all three countries with a gradual increase in a more western pattern of leisure (Martin and Mason). However, ''a uniquely Muslim state of mind and its potential influence on leisure behaviour'' (p. 45) is evidently very important, whereas the prevalence of traditional cultural barriers (e.g., limited participation in sports among women) and the lack of suitable facilities and resources should not be ignored (Martin and Mason, 2003).…”

“…First, Martin and Mason (2003) explored the relevance of the concept of leisure to three countries in the Middle East, namely, Egypt, Iran, and Turkey, based on their reviews of the literature and available statistics on leisure engaged by people in these countries. They suggested that ''leisure time and leisure activities are topics of growing importance for countries of the Middle East with an Islamic tradition'' (p. 37).…”

“…Despite the proximity of the Middle Eastern region to the Asian region, the histories and cultural contexts of the Middle East appear quite unique compared to the rest of the regions of the world (Martin and Mason, 2003). Also, many people in the Middle East seem to be oppressed and disadvantaged historically, culturally, and politically, which has implications for their QOL (Shalhoub-Kevorkian, 2003).…”

Leisure in an Islamic context

“…We considered this in an earlier article on Leisure in Three Middle Eastern Countries, indicating that "our starting point is the concept of leisure as it has been developed and elaborated by many studies in Western countries over the past century." (Martin & Mason, 2003). There we indicated the usefulness of Neulinger's distinction between the objective definition of leisure, defined in terms of particular types of activities carried out in certain residual periods of time, and the subjective definition of leisure as a state of mind (Neulinger, 1981 ).…”