Naslov
Sociabilty and Current Trends in Outdoor Activities: Measuring Nature-Inclination in the Croatian Student Population

Autori
Vrsaljko, Anđelko ; Proroković, Jakov

Vrsta, podvrsta i kategorija rada
Sažeci sa skupova, prošireni sažetak, znanstveni

Izvornik
International Conference on Monitoring and Management of Visitors in (ABSTRACT BOOK) Recreational and Protected Areas (MMV) 11th: Behavioral changes of outdoor and landscape recreational consumption in Global Green Deal context / - , 2022, 39-40

Skup
11th International Conference on Monitoring and Management of Visitors 11 (MMV11)

Mjesto i datum
Jurmala, Latvija, 19.09.2022. - 22.09.2022

Vrsta sudjelovanja
Predavanje

Vrsta recenzije
Međunarodna recenzija

Ključne riječi
sociability, nature-inclination, urbanization, relationship with nature

Sažetak
The concept of sociability has been approached differently across social sciences, with sociologists referring to it as “the play-form of association” without ulterior end in its pure form (Simmel & Hughes, 1949: 255), and psychologists defining it more precisely as the “preference for being with others” as opposed to being alone, distinguishing it from similar related concepts such as extraversion, impulsivity and shyness (see Eaves & Eysenck, 1975 ; Cheek & Buss, 1981). The use of digital media and technology-induced social interaction have resulted in a decrease of in- person social interaction, and adolescents who spend time on social media and rarely engage in face-to-face social interaction with peers report the most loneliness (Twenge et al., 2019). Similar trends have been observed when it comes to spending time outdoors, with youth preferring to spend their time in front of a screen instead of connecting to nature (Larson et al., 2019). Operating under the assumption that the technology-related processes might be at the core of humans’ alienation from both nature and each other, we wanted to examine whether a person’s sociability could be a predictor of their relationship with nature. As far as we can assess, this study is stepping into the new territory considering that no research or theory thus far has explored the relationship between sociability and nature-inclination. While many studies have analyzed the effects of nature-relatedness and nature-connectedness can have on individual happiness and wellbeing (see Howell et al., 2013 ; Zelenski & Nisbet, 2014 ; McMahan 2018 ; Pritchard et al., 2020 ; Barrera-Hernández et al., 2020 ; Stieger et al., 2022 etc.), few to none seem to have examined the interdependence between one's sociability and their relationship with nature. The survey was conducted online with the help of the Google Forms software, where it was filled out voluntarily and anonymously. For data retrieval, we used a form of snowball sampling ; the students were asked to hand out the (link to) questionnaires to their (other) student friends, and they were instructed to target as many as they can outside of the city in which they study (Zadar, Croatia). This resulted in, although a relatively small one, a nationwide sample (N=422), with majority of the participants being from the major cities in Croatia. The online survey consisted of three sections: (1) the questionnaire of participants’ sociodemographic data, (2) the scale measuring their sociability and (3) the scale evaluating their preferences when it comes to spending time in nature or urban settings. The analysis confirmed high internal consistency and one-factor structure of both scales. Despite our initial hypothesis that the students' sociability and their preference towards natural world might correlate, the data clearly showed absence of any significant correlation between the two constructs. Although the relationship between these two constructs is at the focus of this paper, we also reflect upon some differences concerning their socio-demographic background and the scores on both Sociability and Nature- Inclination scale. When it comes to Sociability, there were significant differences between students in terms of their gender, religiosity and household income: (1) male students tend to be more sociable than female students, (2) religious students tend to be more sociable than non- religious and (3) students coming from a better financial background are more sociable than others. When it comes to students' preferences of natural settings, there were also differences in terms of religiosity and household income, as well as the size of the city from which they come: (1) religious students tend to prefer natural over urban settings, (2) those coming from a more modest financial background prefer natural over urban settings and (3) those coming from smaller cities demonstrate a greater inclination towards nature-based activities. Interestingly enough, a one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) showed no significant difference between men and female students when it comes to their preferences between natural and urban settings. Considering that religiosity and household income turned out to be the determinants for both Sociability and Nature-Inclination, the question remains why their direction was the same when it comes to Sociability, and yet it was different in terms of Nature-Inclination. When it comes to household income, the real cause of this difference might be in the fact that those coming from more modest financial background also tend to come from smaller cities in Croatia, which leads them to engage with nature more and thus appreciate it over urban settings. Finally, we conclude that the relationship between Sociability and Nature- Inclination can be approached from two standpoints. First, one could assume that less sociable people would prefer natural over urban settings because of the solitude and serenity it offers. On the other hand, one of the main traits of sociable people is that they are more open to new experiences, which is why they might be willing to engage in nature-based activities more frequently, or their social connection might talk them into it. In fact, one of the reasons for the absence of significant correlation between the two constructs could be in the fact that these two factors negate each other, i.e., each group of people tends to find in nature what they need, whether it’s the team building-like social experience with their friends, a more personal interaction between a few, or an escape from any social contact to seclusion and tranquility.

Izvorni jezik
Engleski

Znanstvena područja
Sociologija, Interdisciplinarne društvene znanosti

POVEZANOST RADA