Control Over Self and Space in Rockclimbing

AbstractThe leisure experience has been defined with reference to the quality of self-determination. A qualitative study of a community of rockclimbers indicated that self-determination, or a person's control over the structure of the activity, was an important element that determined satisfaction within the rockclimbing experience, particularly (though not exclusively) for women climbers. This attribute appears to be a precondition for the experience of a second type of control, which was identified as control over self, or competence, leading to a flow experience. Perceptions of control were developed through narratives that interpreted past actions, but also contributed to a desired identity that formed a motive for future behavior.