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Showing papers in "Leisure Studies in 2010"


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the concept of serious leisure from a gender perspective is explored in relation to women's climbing careers and identities, and the authors use a feminist theoretical approach that recognises both collective experiences of gender, focusing on inequality, as well as a post-structuralist engagement with difference and identities.
Abstract: In this paper, the notion of serious leisure is critically explored in relation to women's climbing careers and identities. It draws upon findings from an in‐depth qualitative study of 19 women climbers and explores the concept of serious leisure from a gender perspective, arguing that in order to develop a more sophisticated understanding of serious leisure, it is important to situate participation in the social, cultural and political contexts that frame experience. Drawing on the theoretical work of Aitchison, Shaw and Wearing, we use a feminist theoretical approach that recognises both collective experiences of gender, focusing on inequality, as well as a post‐structuralist engagement with difference and identities. The data identified the central significance of physicality, social relationships and motherhood in the experiences of, and motivations for, the women's participation in climbing as a form of serious leisure. It is argued that understanding the relationship between climbing and the women's...

143 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors investigated how serious leisure and flow contribute to subjective well-being in the daily lives of older adults and found that serious leisure was positively associated with positive affect (PA), and flow had a significant negative relationship with PA.
Abstract: The purpose of this study was to investigate how serious leisure and flow contribute to subjective well‐being (SWB) in the daily lives of older adults. Twenty‐two older adults were recruited from a local aging agency in a midwestern city in the USA. Experience Sampling Method was used to collect data on the daily experiences of the older adults. Hierarchical Linear Modelling was used to predict levels of SWB from experience variables (i.e. serious leisure, flow) and individual difference variables (i.e. gender, retirement). One‐way analyses of variance, random coefficient, and intercepts and slopes‐as‐outcomes models were tested. Serious leisure was positively associated with positive affect (PA), and flow had a significant negative relationship with PA. The results of this study confirm previous findings that SWB is an important consequence of serious leisure in everyday life.

123 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors draw on Bourdieu's key concepts in an effort to understand particular social practices and the effect of family as a social environment and determinant for participation in leisure time physical activity.
Abstract: This paper draws on Bourdieu's key concepts in an effort to understand particular social practices and the effect of family as a social environment and determinant for participation in leisure time physical activity. As an exploratory study, the aim was to elicit children's subjective views of their engagement in leisure time physical activity settings. Adopting an interpretive perspective, six 11‐ to 14‐year‐old children from intact couple families and single parent families were interviewed in small groups, exploring lived experiences of their participation in physical activity in relation to their family structure. The study suggests that family structure plays a vital role in helping to shape children's dispositions towards physical activity. All children were subject to the transmission of parental beliefs and values towards physical activity though this was further reinforced in intact couple families through joint participation. Moreover, children from single parent families were seen to exhibit mo...

88 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Ouellette and Hay as mentioned in this paper reviewed, and applied, the Michel Foucau theory in a volume that attempts to review, and apply, the Foucaux theory to the real world.
Abstract: by Laurie Ouellette and James Hay, Oxford, Blackwell, 2008, 255 pp, £1799 (paperback), ISBN 978‐1‐4051‐3441‐5 This book is an ambitious volume It attempts to review, and apply, the Michel Foucau

88 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors discuss the conditions under and ways in which commercial entrepreneurs in the Netherlands have created this market, the meanings that they have ascribed to their centers and the dilemmas with which they have been confronted.
Abstract: During the last twenty years, a remarkable new type of service has been developed in the world of sports, which can be described as the indoorisation of outdoor sports. Typical outdoor sports like climbing, skiing, surfing, rowing, and skydiving, which used to be exclusively practiced in a natural environment of mountains, oceans, rivers and the air, are now being offered for consumption in safe, predictable and controlled indoor centers. The present article emphasizes the rise of indoor lifestyle sports, such as rafting, snowboarding, skydiving and surfing. It discusses the conditions under and ways in which commercial entrepreneurs in the Netherlands have created this market, the meanings that they have ascribed to their centers and the dilemmas with which they have been confronted. It is argued that the rise of this economic market cannot be understood if it is solely interpreted as the result of economic, technological or natural developments. These economic activities were also embedded in and influenced by shared understandings and their representations in structured fields of outdoor sports, mainstream sports and leisure experience activities. A better understanding of the indoorisation of outdoor lifestyle sports can be achieved by recognizing how these structures and cultures pervaded the rise of this new market.

87 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors adopt a broad approach, examining a range of social science disciplines and applying them to specific phenomena located within the leisure field, namely, volunteers and volunteering in leisure settings.
Abstract: Leisure has been widely examined within the context of social science theory. This article adopts a broad approach, examining a range of social science disciplines and applying them to specific phenomena located within the leisure field, namely, volunteers and volunteering in leisure settings. In a disciplinary sense, the sociological view focuses upon the conceptualisation of volunteering as leisure, the psychological view seeks to understand motivations driving volunteering, while the perspective of economists supplements these standpoints in terms of why people volunteer and further examines the value of volunteer contributions. Comparative analysis of the perspectives enunciated within these key disciplines provides for a fuller picture of the status of research relating to leisure volunteers and volunteering. Accordingly, this article aims to identify gaps in current knowledge, draws out conclusions for an improved understanding of this area as well as to enhance comprehension of disciplinary contrib...

84 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors examine the construction and consumption of dance music spaces and experiences and argue that discourses of liminality and rites of passage frame the spatial construction of contemporary large dance music festivals and that travelling to these peculiar configurations of open, closed and negotiable abstracted spaces is both an act of journey and pilgrimage.
Abstract: ‘Dance culture’ is the term now used to describe a large number of connected, inter‐related and overlapping music scenes that have emerged from the warehouse, acid house and rave scenes, and are characterised by electronic music, dancing and the consumption of illicit drugs. This paper examines the construction and consumption of these dance music spaces and experiences. The study adopted a reflexive anthropological methodological package, including participant observation, field trips, interviews and focus groups. It argues that discourses of liminality and rites of passage frame the spatial construction of contemporary large dance music festivals and that travelling to these peculiar configurations of open, closed and negotiable abstracted spaces is both an act of journey and pilgrimage.

77 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examine the impact of mega-events such as the Olympic Games on tourism development in host territories, focusing on the case of Torino 2006 and propose some post-event trends in the Olympic territory.
Abstract: This paper examines the impact of mega‐events such as the Olympic Games on tourism development in host territories. In the first part, we adopt a territorialisation approach to understand the relationship between the event and the host region. A mega‐event is conceived as a great chance to generate new territory as it produces both tangible and intangible legacies that remain after the event ends: renewal of facilities for hospitality and accommodation, better infrastructures, better training for people in the tourism business, and improvement in international visibility. These legacies can represent a platform for future tourism development if local policies demonstrate the ability to re‐territorialise a mega‐event’s temporary transforming effects on tourism into long‐lasting ones. The paper then focuses on the case of Torino 2006. Moving from an overview to recent tourism data, some considerations of the post‐event trends in the Olympic territory are proposed. Thus, the paper highlights several critical...

75 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examined the evidence of social capital in a leisure club for middle-aged and older women and found that participants had a sense of community and this community intersected within the public spheres of the larger society through mechanisms such as Society-led celebrations and volunteerism.
Abstract: The purpose of this study was to examine the emergent evidence of social capital in a leisure club for middle‐aged and older women. We analysed 1693 members' responses to an online query about meaningful experiences garnered through participation in the Red Hat Society®. Our analysis revealed aspects of social capital, including bonding and bridging opportunities, social support, sisterhood and civic engagement. Members had a sense of community and this community intersected within the public spheres of the larger society through mechanisms such as Society‐led celebrations and volunteerism. We connect these aspects of social capital to issues of individual and community health and well‐being.

65 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors explore the experiences of members of mothers groups by using a critical social capital analysis and conclude that mothers groups enable mothers to "get together" and "get by" whilst also representing groups in which mothers "get left out", "get judged", and ''get gendered".
Abstract: Mothers groups, or informal collections of mothers who meet regularly or semi‐regularly with other women who have children of similar ages, are often positive sources of friendship, support and the exchange of resources. Of course, they are also sites of less positive outcomes such as exclusion, judgement and the reproduction of dominant gender ideologies. In this paper, the authors explore the experiences of members of mothers groups by using a critical social capital analysis. Based on an analysis of interview transcripts of 24 mothers who were members of various mothers groups from a mid‐sized city located in south‐western Ontario, Canada, findings from the study suggest mothers groups enable mothers to ‘get together’, ‘get by’ and ‘get ahead’, whilst also representing groups in which mothers ‘get left out’, ‘get judged’ and ‘get gendered’. By drawing upon social capital literature, including feminist and critical social capital literature, the authors conclude the paper with a discussion of two questi...

53 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors explore the political nature of leisure in the context of dementia and present a research agenda for researchers to better understand the political and social nature of the leisure space for resistance.
Abstract: Older adults are at risk of experiencing ageism, which can have negative implications for their quality of life. When diagnosed with dementia, older adults may experience increased stigma due to memory loss. However, leisure can be a space for resisting dominant ideologies, and older adults may use leisure to resist ageist stereotypes, leading to feelings of empowerment. Since persons with dementia experience increased stigma, leisure may be a space to resist stereotypical notions of dementia. This paper explores leisure as a space for resistance and presents a research agenda for researchers to better understand the political nature of leisure within the context of dementia.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, Roberts is well known for his research and writing in the fields of youth studies, lei... and children's mental health, and is a well-known authority in the UK.
Abstract: by Ken Roberts, Basingstoke, Palgrave, 2009, 243 pp., £19.99 (paperback), ISBN 978‐0‐230‐21444‐6 Professor Ken Roberts is well known for his research and writing in the fields of youth studies, lei...

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: This article explored the reasons for this development and examined the experiences of gay men who play for clubs which compete in specifically gay leagues and also, in some cases, established leagues and found that a new set of values and principles is emerging that underpins the way they play; aggression and hostility are often expressed.
Abstract: Traditionally and in popular culture, football has been associated with particular hegemonic representations of masculinity, including notably heterosexuality. A direct challenge to these attitudes has come from the growth in the number of gay football clubs. This paper explores the reasons for this development and examines the experiences of gay men who play for clubs which compete in specifically gay leagues and also, in some cases, established leagues. Clubs have taken positive and affirmative action to enable them to achieve their primary purpose of playing football. In doing so, they have often tackled homophobia in ways that eschew the conventional punitive approaches associated with organisational actions towards discrimination. Through semi‐structured interviews, focus groups and participant observation, a picture has emerged of gay men's football in the UK today which suggests that a new set of values and principles is emerging that underpins the way they play; aggression and hostility are often ...

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The authors explored the personal identity work of lifestyle travellers and found that while a minority of the respondents embraced a saturation of personal identity in the subjective formation of a cosmopolitan cultural identity, several respondents were paradoxically left with more identity questions than answers as the result of their travels.
Abstract: This article explores the personal identity work of lifestyle travellers – individuals for whom extended leisure travel is a preferred lifestyle that they return to repeatedly. Qualitative findings from in-depth semi-structured interviews with lifestyle travellers in northern India and southern Thailand are interpreted in light of theories on identity formation in late modernity that position identity as problematic. It is suggested that extended leisure travel can provide exposure to varied cultural praxes that may contribute to a sense of social saturation. Whilst a minority of the respondents embraced a saturation of personal identity in the subjective formation of a cosmopolitan cultural identity, several of the respondents were paradoxically left with more identity questions than answers as the result of their travels.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors explore the power imbued in "in situ bonding social capital" when on vacation by investigating midlife single women's experiences of eating out alone on holiday.
Abstract: In this paper I explore the power imbued in ‘in situ bonding social capital’ when on vacation by investigating midlife single women's experiences of eating out alone on holiday. In contrast to much tourism research which envisions eating out together on holiday as carefree and sociable experiences, I consider the company of family and friends as an asset or as in situ bonding social capital. Drawing upon poststructural feminism, emotional geographies and tourism mobilities I demonstrate, on the one hand, the value of this capital by pointing to how lack of the same makes the women feel lonely and socially excluded and, hence, dislike eating out alone on holiday. I argue that this capital is incorporated and affected by the ‘normalised discourse’ of the vacation. On the other hand, I also identify times and spaces within which this capital is less powerful. On holiday some of the women enjoy eating out at lunchtime and in cities. I thus also argue that the women's emotional reactions to eating places are m...

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Buonanno et al. as mentioned in this paper pointed out that one consequence of the burgeoning attention on new media is that ‘old media is neglected in the resea cation.
Abstract: by Milly Buonanno, Bristol, Intellect, 2008, 114 pp., £19.95 (paperback), ISBN 9781841501819 One consequence of the burgeoning attention on ‘new’ media is that ‘old’ media is neglected in the resea...

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors present an overview of the current theory of economic valuation for academic researchers and a starting point for further investigation, and provide practical help for those wishing to conduct an economic valuation by providing guidance as to which methods are appropriate and how results can be interpreted.
Abstract: ● To assist those who wish to conduct an unbiased economic valuation of a cultural activity or organisation. ● To demonstrate what common methods actually measure and where misrepresentation may exist. ● To provide an overview of the current theory of economic valuation for academic researchers and a ‘starting point for further investigation’. ● To provide practical help for those wishing to conduct an economic valuation by providing guidance as to which methods are appropriate and how results can be interpreted.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, a brief discussion of insider research and insider controversy in disability research is presented, focusing on the extent to which researchers of disability in sport and leisure reflect on two important issues in their research findings: their experiences as disabled or non-disabled researchers and conducting inclusive and emancipatory disability research.
Abstract: This research note offers a brief discussion of insider research and insider–outsider controversies in disability research. It then focuses on the extent to which researchers of disability in sport and leisure reflect on two important issues in their research findings: their experiences as disabled or non‐disabled researchers and conducting inclusive and emancipatory disability research. It suggests that whilst there are many ethical challenges associated with doing disability research in sport and leisure settings, scholars in this area have offered limited detailed reflexive accounts of their experiences. By addressing this, we may learn from each other how to improve the action and political potential of research in this area.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors suggest a mixed-methods approach to club studies that combines quantitative data, qualitative interviews and ethnography conducted in the club space, and suggest that the researcher travels into the social la...
Abstract: Club studies are sociological investigations of youth drug use in the social context of the club. By being present at the club, the researcher tries to gain access to a somehow hidden population of drug users who only to a lesser extent – or not at all – perceive their drug use as problematic. This is the large group of people who primarily consider their drug use as a leisure activity, and thus as a means for deriving pleasure. In spite of impressive club studies conducted in both Great Britain and the USA, it seems that, broadly speaking, previous efforts can be characterised as either very broad and/or quantitative or very particular, sub‐cultural and exclusively qualitative. Through a methodological discussion of these studies, this article suggests a mixed‐methods approach to club studies that combines quantitative data, qualitative interviews and ethnography conducted in the club space. By introducing the concept of ‘socionautics’, this article suggests that the researcher travels into the social la...

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors report the findings of a study that examined the benefits of holidaying accruing to a group of children and youth, and those experiencing social exclusion.
Abstract: There is a general assumption in contemporary society that holidaying is beneficial in many ways Yet, even in affluent societies, access to holidaying opportunities continues to be constrained by a variety of factors relating to inter alia income, gender, health and race This is problematic because it means that sizeable minorities within advanced societies are being denied the benefits that researchers have attributed to the practice of holidaying Recently, there has been a renewed interest in problematising the exclusionist nature of holidaying with researchers arguing that a lack of holiday opportunities may compound social deprivation, reinforce social problems and heighten social exclusion A number of knowledge gaps have been identified including the extent to which holidaying benefits children and youth and those experiencing social exclusion This paper aims to redress this knowledge deficit by reporting the findings of a study that examined the benefits of holidaying accruing to a group of chi

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, an autoethnographic account explores the everyday ethical and emotional issues that arise throughout the research process, including researcher safety, encountering the unexpected and sensitive topics, empathetic responsibility, role conflict, abandonment and intellectual distance.
Abstract: This autoethnographic account explores the everyday ethical and emotional issues that arise throughout the research process. Represented through creative analytic practice (CAP), I examine issues related to researcher safety, encountering the unexpected and sensitive topics, empathetic responsibility, role conflict, abandonment and intellectual distance ‐ all issues that shape the type of knowledge constructed as well as the researcher’s and participant’s well‐being. Emphasis is placed on using autoethnography (as a methodology) and CAP (as a form of representation) to deepen our understanding of the complexity of leisure experiences and meanings, while confronting how we come to know and write about ‘others’.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Through autoethnography, queer theory and edgework, the authors examine Wild Ginger Witch Camp, an annual five-day event where one hundred or so people gather to celebrate shared politics, spirituality and environmental concerns.
Abstract: Through autoethnography, queer theory and edgework, I examine Wild Ginger Witchcamp, an annual five‐day event where one hundred or so people gather to celebrate shared politics, spirituality and environmental concerns. I include narratives of lived experience, woven and layered into the text to illuminate the complex realities of leisure that extends beyond resisting the normative to one of the nurturing alternatives. The social health of a community depends on the community’s ability to publicly affirm itself, and it is critical that a community find a way to transmit and transform its culture. Queer theory, the related constructs of heteronormativity and counterpublics, along with edgework, can help us understand the importance of communal and culturally relevant leisure particularly for individuals and communities that do not see themselves reflected in the dominant culture.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The authors discusses three related methodological problems from the point of view of a researcher interested in studying young people's leisure experiences, including the problem of induction, essentialism, and critical rationalism.
Abstract: This paper discusses three related methodological problems from the point of view of a researcher interested in studying young people’s leisure experiences. The first part of the paper makes a moral argument for why we should attempt to listen to young people. The second part of the paper uses an example from research with young footballers to explain how a modified grounded theory (GT) methodology can be useful in achieving this aim. Modified methods for engaging young people in discussion – e.g. mind maps and vignettes – are introduced here in the context of a developing GT study. The third and final part of the paper engages critically with some of the epistemological problems inherent in GT, notably the problem of induction. Two radical reactions to the problems of GT – essentialism and anarchism – are critically reviewed before a third way is introduced. This third position is critical rationalism and it is argued that this position may help researchers engage in GT research in a fundamentally critic...

Journal ArticleDOI
Bob Snape1
TL;DR: Casey as mentioned in this paper is a welcome addition to the small but growing number of texts which treat gambling as a normat..., which is not the case in our own work, however.
Abstract: by Emma Casey, Aldershot, Ashgate, 2008, 148 pp., £55.00 (hardback), ISBN 978‐0‐7546‐4617‐4 This book is a welcome addition to the small but growing number of texts which treat gambling as a normat...

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors use two medium-term, ethnographic research projects on rugby league (one from Spracklen; the other an on-going project by Timmins) to explore northernness, blackness, whiteness and our own roles in the ethnographies as 'black' and 'white' researchers researching 'race' and identity in a community that remains (but not exclusively) a place for a working class whiteness to be articulated.
Abstract: Rugby league is part of the white, working‐class (male) culture of the north of England, and is a sport that is used by its supporters to (re)produce both an imagined community of nostalgic northernness and an imaginary community of locally situated hegemonically masculine belonging. The invented traditions of its origins link the game to a white, working‐class twentieth‐century culture of mills, pits, terraced houses and pubs; a culture increasingly marginalised, re‐shaped and challenged in this century. In this paper we use two medium‐term, ethnographic research projects on rugby league (one from Spracklen; the other an on‐going project by Timmins) to explore northernness, blackness, whiteness and our own roles in the ethnographies as ‘black’ and ‘white’ researchers researching ‘race’ and identity in a community that remains (but not exclusively) a place for a working‐class whiteness to be articulated. We argue that our own histories and identities are pivotal in how we are accepted as legitimate ethnog...

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: A longitudinal panel study that used a continuum of developmentally related meanings to investigate characteristics of change for a group of 35 Australian students as they progressed through a three-year leisure studies program and then five years after graduation as discussed by the authors.
Abstract: Leisure meanings can remain stable and change over time. However, knowledge about the operation of meanings is generally limited to a single point in time or retrospective findings generated from cross‐sectional research. This paper reports a longitudinal panel study that used a continuum of developmentally related meanings to investigate characteristics of change for a group of 35 Australian students as they progressed through a three‐year leisure studies programme and then five years after graduation. Results showed approximately two‐thirds of students changed meanings during the study and that meanings evolved in a logical progression from less to more developed understandings. The amount of change was relatively small, occurred early in the programme or after graduation and was more evident for younger students with less developed meanings. Sources of change were related to educational and personal contingencies. The paper concludes by presenting several propositions about changeability in meanings an...

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors compare Jumbo Pass and the Tobeatic Wilderness Area, Canada with two totally different outcomes in the Lake District National Park for powerboating and off-road motoring.
Abstract: 1. Leisure and the politics of the environment 2. Politics, research and the natural environment: the lifeworlds of water-based sport and recreation in Wales 3. Leisure, nature and environmental movements in the mass media: comparing Jumbo Pass and the Tobeatic Wilderness Area, Canada 4. The politics of the environment, and noisy sports: two totally different outcomes in the Lake District National Park for powerboating and off-road motoring 5. Leisure and sustainable development in Norway: part of the solution and the problem 6. Recreational activism: politics, nature, and the rise of neoliberalism 7. Embodiment and social and environmental action in nature-based sport: spiritual spaces 8. In search of belonging: immigrant experiences of outdoor nature-based settings in New Zealand

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The nature of the data found on the Internet and the sources there in which these data may be found are discussed, showing the Internet can be a rich source of descriptive, ethnographic, data.
Abstract: There are times when researchers want to examine sizeable set of leisure activities, often those pursued by a particular demographic category or those grouped according a particular theoretic classification. Yet, conventional qualitative methods are poorly suited to gathering the broad range of data they require for this purpose. These methods are too labour‐intensive, while quantitative surveys, if they are to be effective, are limited to known populations which can be properly sampled. But the need to gather data on sets of leisure activities persists; for considering all the leisure activities pursued in the world today, we have some, not even full, ethnographic knowledge of only a very small proportion. One way to solve this problem is through exploratory Internet data collection (EIDC): searching the Internet for exploratory qualitative data on large sets of leisure activities. The nature of the data found on the Internet and the sources there in which these data may be found are discussed. The Inter...

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Bartkus and Davis as discussed by the authors present a compilation of Elgar's works, including the first four works of the first cycle of the Elgar cycle. But as the editors note in the introduction to this compilation, "social c...
Abstract: edited by Vina Ona Bartkus and James H. Davis, Cheltenham, Edward Elgar, 2009, 356 pp., £95 (hardback), ISBN 978 1 84720 072 3 As the editors note in the introduction to this compilation, ‘social c...

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The Q methodology as mentioned in this paper is a meta-theoretical approach to understand agents' subjectivities and fits logically with the epistemological approach outlined previously, and it can be used to understand the beliefs of those we seek to study.
Abstract: These research notes from a ‘live’ project set about introducing two methodological aspects of research to scholars and students of leisure and sport. First, the meta‐theoretical underpinning of the live project is discussed and explained. This goes beyond a standard statement of the project’s epistemological position by emphasising the need to clarify work that lies ‘on the border’ between epistemologies. Second, the paper introduces a novel and little known research tool termed as ‘Q methodology’. This is an effective procedure to understand agents’ subjectivities and fits, logically, with the epistemological approach outlined previously. Such a tool offers students and scholars an exciting new way to understand the beliefs of those we seek to study.