Investigating climbing as a spiritual experience
Michael F. Pond, Bruce Martin, Elizabeth Fuller Collins, Andrew M. Szolosi
Journal of Outdoor Recreation Education and Leadership October 19, 2014 DOI: 10.7768/1948-5123.1262 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Qualitative phenomenological study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 20 |
| Population | Climbers |
| Keywords | Climbing Aesthetics Archaeology |
| Citations | 5 |
| Key findings | Climbing can be spiritually enriching and lead to spiritual experiences and personal spiritual practices independent of organized institutions. |
Abstract
This research explores the role that climbing plays in the spirituality of climbers.Twenty semi-structured interviews were conducted following the framework of phenomenology which yielded five major themes.This study identified ways in which climbing was spiritually enriching, climbing's influence on spiritual development and wellbeing, how climbing led to having spiritual experiences and the outcomes of these experiences, and the ways in which participants created their own spiritual practices and beliefs independently of organized institutions.William James' criteria for mystical experiences were used as a framework for analyzing spiritual experiences.This study highlights the lack of a theoretical framework that specifically applies spirituality to the context of serious leisure.This research contributes to the bodies of literature regarding spirituality, leisure studies, and literature relating to spirituality within leisure contexts.