How Does Staff Working at University Think About and Experience Leisure? (A Qualitative Study)

Background: University staff plays an important role in breeding a healthy and prosperous generation. Their right for attending to interests and selfactualization are noticeable. This qualitative research has been conducted in order to understand and explain the perspective and experience of staff working at Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences (AJUMS) about Leisure time. Methods: A qualitative study using purposeful sampling was performed among staff working in all parts of AJUMS about leisure time in 2012. The tool used for gathering data was a deep, semi-structured interview. Data saturation was achieved with 18 interviews. Findings from the interviews were analyzed using conventional content analysis. Results: In this study, there were 5 themes for perspective and experience of staff, including meaningfulness and purposefulness of leisure time (physical, mental and social), leisure time activities (passing individual and in group), leisure time duration (more or less, and the same as the time of working), barriers for leisure time (personal, social, and environmental), and suggestions for how to spend leisure time (role of the person and community). The findings from participants’ views and experiences showed that they are not satisfied with their leisure pattern. With attention to working at university, they do not have efficient leisure time duration. Conclusion: Participants believed that leisure time is effective to improve their physical, psychological, and social performance. People spend their leisure time either individually or in groups. Personal, social, and environmental barriers highlight the role of an individual and society as a whole in increasing opportunities for better leisure