Expanding outdoor opportunities for women.

Alice grew up in a family where going camping was a major family activity. While her 12-year marri wonderful in many ways, he did not consider himself the "outdoorsy" type, so going camping was not a Fortunately, when their children got older, the girls joined a Girl Scout Troop and Alice eventually Although the experience was not the same as her childhood memories, she found numerous opportunities children on various camping activities as a part of the adult leadership responsibilities.

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Sarah is reaching her middle years. Her last child just went to college and she wanted to expand h A friend of hers who was active with a wilderness protection group encouraged her to become involved She is now an advocate with a local lobbying group that works for legislation related to scenic wate

These vignettes describe the lives of five women who have had or seek to have different experiences in the outdoors. The opportunities for women alone, women-only groups, families and organized group activities have expanded greatly in the past few years. The changing roles of women in society have also given women opportunities to participate in many activities that were previously perceived as gender inappropriate.

According to the U.S. Bureau of the Census, 1991 report, the number of women involved in physical activities often equals or exceeds that of men. For example, in 1989 almost 26 million women went backpacking and camping, 29 million rode bicycles, 16 million went fishing and seven million went skiing. In the 1990s in all aspects of outdoor recreation, the participation of women is increasing faster than that of men. Recent statistics also indicate the likeliness that even more women will participate in the future. For example, Kelly projected in his book, Recreation Trends Toward the Year 2000, that more females than males will be backpacking/hiking by the year 2000.

The interest and increased involvement of women in the outdoors raises questions about how to understand and interpret this phenomenon. What are the benefits that females seek in the outdoors? What constraints do they have to address to participate? What role do leisure service providers have in facilitating the involvement of females in outdoor activities.

Benefits of Outdoor Activity for Women

Outdoor activity is interpreted broadly to include any physical, emotional, social, or service pursuits that use the natural environment as the primary focus for involvement. Thus, outdoor pursuits may be physical activity such as hiking or canoeing, emotional involvement such as experiencing a beautiful sunset or watching a beaver build a dam, social activities where a family or group of friends may get together for a picnic or outdoor event, or service pursuits where an individual may contribute to environmental protection through involvement in the outdoors. The natural environment may range from local parks and greenways, to wilderness areas, to various outdoor tourist attractions.

We do not want to suggest that women derive any different values from the outdoors, but it is important to describe the "product" that women seek in outdoor experiences. As suggested by Clare Simpson at a World Leisure and Recreation Association research conference, women may have a tendency to view their outdoor experiences as a "journey" rather than as a "quest." A woman's "journey" tends to be thought of as a process focused on the inner experience of self realization and aesthetics rather than on the more product-oriented "quest" traditionally associated with men. Women involved in outdoor activities may describe their love of the outdoors for its beauty, the freedom found in these environments, the peacefulness and solitude, and the feeling of the out-of-doors as a spiritual home. As in the vignette of Mary (page 40), outdoor experiences become a source of personal fulfillment and tranquility where beauty brings peace to the soul.

Another aspect that may serve a unique function for women is the sense of gender role empowerment that may arise from outdoor experiences. The socialization process of girls and women has fostered a belief that females are less capable, less physically skilled and poorer in decision-making than males; professionals in outdoor recreation such as Denise Mitten, director of Woodswoman, believe that outdoor experiences may be one of the best ways to begin to counter this view. Often the benefits may be recognized in retrospect as the women acknowledge the strengths, skills and self-esteem that they gained.

Women involved in outdoor recreation often talk about their self-esteem in terms of increased self-respect and self-integrity. In a society where being a woman is often perceived as a weakness, successfully facing challenges encountered in outdoor settings may help women rid themselves of self and societally imposed limitations. Going beyond these limitations results in higher self-esteem and self-reliance which, in turn, leads to a greater sense of personal empowerment. For example, a woman may be canoeing a river with a strong current. Instead of trying to muscle her way through a set of rapids, she recognizes that success may not rest with a high level of strength to work against the river, but rather the ability to work with the natural force in a way that maximizes her skills and abilities. Experiences such as this one or of Joan's vignette at NOLS illustrate the sense of empowerment that can arise for women through their outdoor activities.

Constraints to Outdoor Pursuits for Women

Much has been written recently about constraints to involvement in recreational activities and leisure. The constraints that women and girls face when participating in outdoor activities may be similar to what many men and boys race, but some of these constraints may be further magnified because of gender issues.

A constraint may be anything that inhibits people's ability to participate in leisure activities, to spend more time doing so, to take advantage of leisure services, or to achieve a desired level of satisfaction. Thus, when we begin to examine constraints we must take into account myriad possible ways that people address constraints. The way that women negotiate their constraints in the outdoors may lead to various levels of participation and the need to provide a variety of opportunities.

The common constraints identified for any activity tend to be time and money. These perceptions are no less true when analyzing outdoor pursuits for females. Certainly major trips or vacations obviously require time and money. Involvement or lack of involvement may also result in aspects related to time and money such as women's status in society and family responsibilities. As we have explored women and leisure in our research, gender expectations, ethic of care, physical and psychological safety, and lack of skills and opportunities appear to be the major constraints that affect more upon women's involvement in outdoor pursuits than on men's involvement.

A constraint to women's involvement may have to do with the way in which they conform to gender expectations. We cannot deny that women's roles in society have changed, but a sense that gender expectations are important still remains. For example, some women may not participate in certain activities because of the perceived gender appropriateness of them. In other cases, the roles expected of women will result in their being directed into particular roles. For example, we once taught a women's camping class in which a canoe trip was part of the activity. All of the women indicated that they had canoed prior to this class. When we asked them to go to their canoes, every woman went to the bow. In almost every case, their husband or boyfriend had always taken the stern (in order to steer the boat) and none of the women knew how to do the stern since they had conformed to a traditional role. One of the reasons that women say they enjoy women-only activities in the outdoors is because it allows them to be free of gender-imposed roles.

The ethic of care is defined by Gilligan in her book, In a Different Voice, as an activity of relationship, of seeing and responding to need, of taking care of the world by sustaining the web of connections so that no one is left alone. The major aspects of the ethic of care relate to responsibility and commitment to others. Most women are socialized into an ethic of care. Thus, a woman may be constrained in her own personal leisure and in participating in outdoor activities if she is continually putting the needs of others ahead of her own. Even within certain activities, the experience may be less satisfying because of the requirements of the ethic of care. For example, women have described how going on a camping trip with one's family is not leisure if she has to do all the packing, meal preparation, and is further responsible for making sure that everyone else is happy on the trip. As one woman told us, you may as well stay home and at least have the modern conveniences to use if you are going to have to do the same things when you are in the outdoors as when you are home.

The ethic of care also relates to with whom one associates in outdoor activities. Some women say they do not participate because they do not know other friends who also enjoy these outdoor activities. Many women do not feel comfortable alone in the outdoors or simply lack the confidence to try outdoor activities on their own. These women may want to have activity partners as was the case in the vignettes of Sarah and her environmental club, Sue and her women's group, and Alice and the Girl Scout Troop. However, while the ethic of care may limit women and their entitlement to activity when it is a prescribed gender attribute, it may also provide a basis and justification for interacting in the outdoors with other people.

Physical and psychological safety are issues about which all people are concerned when participating in any kind of active pursuit. For women, however, the threat of being outdoors, particularly alone, is a major deterrent. Even a walk in a quiet park is not safe for women in many locations today. In order to meet their comfort level in safety considerations, women often are forced to go with other people; however, that choice may also diminish some of the emotional and spiritual dimensions that result from the solitary outdoor experience. Physical safety and psychological safety are also closely linked to women's fear of harassment of any type that may occur in unfamiliar settings. A subtle kind of harassment may occur if females are placed in situations where males excel at activities and females are made to feel like second-class citizens. Thus, individuals like Sue may seek to find groups that will support her level of physical ability and of her need for activity partners.

Lack of skills and opportunities often go hand in hand. If girls do not learn outdoor skills as children, they may not feel competent enough to engage in opportunities when they get older. Similarly, however, women may lack the kind of safe and desired activities when they get older. Women often suggested that they quit doing outdoor activities not because they lost interest, but because they no longer had outdoor opportunities with other family members or friends.

Women, as well as men, are interested in a continuum of opportunities that range from passive outdoor pursuits to the potential for month-long treks in the wildest areas of the earth. Many times opportunities exist at the extremes but do not exist in the middle of this continuum, especially as related to the available time and money that many women have. Women who are more interested in the "journey" than the "quest" may find that traditional activities are more competitive and goal driven than they would like. Further, they may lack the skills necessary to do these kinds of activities. For some women, the opportunities do not have to be extensive or in distant lands, but the ability to find good local opportunities may be hindered by transportation or a safe environment.

Implications for Leisure Service Providers

Professionals may want to examine the types of activities that exist for women and girls in the community in relation to the benefits desired and the possible constraints that may exist. A public recreation department does not need to provide all of the activities but could help to assess the availability of outdoor activities for women and the usage patterns. Questions to be asked could include: Do safe places exist where women and girls can go to commune with nature? How do we assure that they are safe? Are we offering skill training classes that allow females to learn new skills and not be intimidated by other individuals who have surpassed them in skill level? Are we considering the needs of women with disabilities in planning outdoor activities?

We can offer a variety of formats for activities for women only, for mixed groups, and family groups. In addition, the varied skill levels of females should be addressed in terms of beginning classes as well as more advanced classes. The amount of structure desired may also vary as some women only need opportunities while others need instruction and leadership.

Women may feel more comfortable in an outdoor environment when they understand the inherent dangers and problems. Thus, interpretive explanations of safety aspects may be useful. Providing a list of safety tips at a trail head may be useful particularly for the novice who may not know the associated dangers.

Female leadership can often encourage women who may feel inappropriate in their interests or in their abilities. As we have found through our experiences, other females often provide excellent role models. When women see other women who are skilled and comfortable in the outdoors, they are more likely to feel that they, too, can be competent.

Local park and recreation departments might develop partnerships with special-interest groups such as hiking or canoeing clubs in order to provide opportunities and training for women who may lack the perceived skills or abilities to participate.

Recreation professionals need to make sure that people have opportunities early in life to experience the outdoors. Youth agencies have accepted this responsibility more than have public recreation departments, but many individuals still do not have opportunities to learn outdoor skills. For example, when an organization is planning a day camp, it is especially important that staff teach some outdoor skills. To only do sports or crafts without including opportunities for learning outdoor living skills such as campcraft skills, cooking, orienteering or teaching outdoor hobbies such as birding, rocking, or fishing is to miss a wonderful opportunity to provide young people with lifelong leisure skills. Young people can also learn that you do not need elaborate equipment in order to enjoy various outdoor activities. While we may not have experienced outdoor people on our recreation staff to provide all of these opportunities, we could explore ways in which people in the community could teach those skills for us.

Women's interest in the outdoors is certain to continue in the future. Professionals in leisure services have many opportunities to work with women in outdoor settings to develop environmental as well as leisure ethics relevant to women who want to play in the outdoors. Women in the outdoors do not usually perceive themselves as having a "macho" image, but rather an image of care and concern for the environment, other people and themselves. As professionals committed to enhancing the quality of life of our participants, we need to understand women's perceptions and needs in outdoor activities and address the social issues that may limit their abilities to participate fully in satisfying outdoor experiences.

Sue loves to do outdoor activities but she is not highly skilled. With the growing violence against women in the outdoors and elsewhere, she is to take hikes or spend time by herself. She hears of a local women's outing club that gets together periodicaUy for various activities and joins the group. She feels safe in the group activities and e women who have a similar skill level.

Joan had always found the outdoors to be fun but her background had given her few opportunities to outdoor activities. While in coUege, she decided to attend the National Outdoor Leadership School. H opportunity changed her life. Now back at college, she enjoys leading various outings for other peop

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Mary has cerebral palsy and uses leg braces and crutches. She has discovered the outdoors is a won soul and enjoys every opportunity she can have to get away. She likes to sit in quiet places in the gardens where she can relax and enjoy the beauty around her. However, transportation to these spots to her outdoor involvement.