A Study of the Ways of Spending Leisure Time and Its Related Variables in the Students of Qom University of Medical Sciences in 2015, Iran

Background and Objectives: Leisure time is an opportunity allowing a person to fill his/her time with mental or entertaining activity according to his/her interest and incentive, when he/she is relatively free. The current study aimed to assess and prioritize the activities of the students of Qom University of Medical Sciences in their leisure time. Methods: This analytical cross-sectional study was conducted on 405 students of Qom University of Medical Sciences in 2015. A total of 325 students were selected using random stratified sampling method. Data were collected by a researcher-made questionnaire, which its reliability and validity had been confirmed. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and chi-square test. Results: Ninety percent of the students had leisure time during the day, which was more than 1 hour in 78% of them. The most important priorities of the students for spending their leisure time was recreation and having fun in 261 subjects (70.5%), rest in 239 (64.6%), using social networks in 239 (64.6%), reading non-school related materials in 229 (61.9%), reading school related materials in 220 (59.5%), sport in 201 (54.3%), and using game software in 193 (52.2%), among which, reading school related materials was significantly different between males and females (p