Showing papers by "Tonia Gray published in 2008"

Profiling Australian Snowsport Injuries: A snapshot from the Snowy Mountains

Abstract: Snowsport tourism provides a major economic contribution to the rural and regional areas surrounding the major resorts in Australia. One of the barriers to snowsport participation is that people perceive snowsports as dangerous and so fear being injured. Understanding snowsport injuries will help managers to diminish the risk of injuries, and marketers to address perceptions of danger. This study explored snowsport-related injuries to participants aged 18 years and older in the Snowy Mountains, Australia, over 31 days during winter 2006. Of 497 injured snowsport participants surveyed, 76.3% were visiting the area for a holiday, while 16.9% were working in the area for the snow season; 45% were women, 55% were men; 33.2% were aged 18–24 years; with 49.3% being alpine skiers and 46.1% snowboarders. For skiers the main injury was to the knee (75.6%), while for snowboarders the wrist was the main injury location (84.6%). The primary location where injuries occurred was on-piste at the resort (47.5%) with the ...

Sense and sensibility : reality and romanticism in human/nature relationships

Abstract: The use of remote locations to evoke the transformative and restorative powers of nature is both well documented and regarded as the key characteristic that differentiates wilderness therapy (WT) frommore traditional forms of therapy/counselling. But how does wilderness therapy access the healing powers of nature? Drawing upon relevant literature and the voices of participants in an ongoing qualitative study this presentation explores the therapeutic potential of human/nature relationships and gains a deeper understanding of some of the conditions, attitudes and approaches may impact upon the transformational potential of wilderness experience. Introduction The use of remote locations to evoke the transformative and restorative powers of nature is both well documented and regarded as the key characteristic that differentiates wilderness therapy (WT) frommore traditional forms of therapy/counselling (Burns, 1998; Gass, 1993; Roszak, Gomes & Kanner 1992). However, the impetus for this paper grew out of a sense of unease. Compared to some of the realities of practice, much of the human/nature literature seemed romantic and remote from our experience as facilitators of WT. For example, a Facilitating Wilderness Therapy student manual (Project Hahn, 2005:7) poses a hypothetical that is typical of some participant’s behaviour, particularly in the early days of a program: You come back to the campfire after setting up your tent and find participants throwing grasshoppers into the fire to watch them explode. How would you respond? Barbequing grasshoppers, terrorising possums, defacing rocks, abusing the weather, flora and fauna are common realities within WT yet, from our perspective, rarely discussed in the literature. Perhaps it would be fairer to say that the literature is less romantic than incomplete. Much of it focuses on outcomes and therefore does not address the kind of questions about WT process that the grasshopper and similar

Busy doing nothing: researching the phenomenon of quiet time in outdoor experiential learning

Abstract: Grounded in the philosophy and practices of experiential learning, wilderness therapy programming is increasingly regarded as an effective alternative to more traditional forms of therapy for people identified as ‘at risk’ or ‘vulnerable’. Typically, within the context of remote and natural environments, wilderness therapy utilises adventure activities such as kayaking, caving, abseiling, and bushwalking to promote positive attitudinal and behavioural change. Whilst the authors respect action and challenge as critical elements in the experiential learning cycle, this paper will examine the antithesis: Quiet Time in wilderness therapy. This paper presents findings from a qualitative study using a grounded theory design that provides insight into the phenomenon of Quiet Time. Quiet Time was identified as one way in which participants in an action oriented program found opportunities to reflect and process their wilderness therapy experience without the guidance of a facilitator. Quiet Time was described as ‘sense’ of solitude defined by four cooccurring subjective and internal conditions: a sense of being alone; focussed attention; a positive mind frame and a personal time perspective. Quiet Time included experiences of “being alone together.” The researchers found that participants utilised Quiet Time to respond to the natural environment, reflect in a ruminative manner, or to relate to each other in authentic and heartfelt conversation. The outcomes of Quiet Time influenced positively on participants’ immediate experience and processing of the wilderness therapy program. A number of outcomes extended beyond the duration of the program. For example, some participants took up of a habit of Quiet Time as a deliberate self-help and life-enhancing strategy. The main implication from this research is that the therapeutic potential of challenge-based wilderness therapy programs can be enhanced by promoting opportunities for participant to initiate Quiet Time through the adoption of an unhurried and process oriented approach to the wilderness adventure.