Time, Leisure and Well-Being - Paperback

by Jiri Zuzanek (Author)

The significance of work and leisure as elements of our social fabric have puzzled philosophers and social scientists for generations. This ambitious new study considers historical views of work and leisure alongside contemporary survey evidence about time-use and well-being.

Combining sophisticated theoretical analysis with empirical research, the book presents a contrarian argument that defines leisure as a serious and stimulating challenge rather than an unqualified benefit or good.

This is vital reading for anyone with an interest in the concept of time in the social sciences, work-life balance, organisational studies, or the history, philosophy, or sociology of work and leisure.

Author Biography

Jiri Zuzanek is Distinguished Professor Emeritus at the University of Waterloo, Canada, and formerly held appointments in the University of Lund, Sweden, Queen's University, New York, and the University of Western Ontario, Canada. He was also Research Director of UNESCO European Centre for Leisure and Education, Prague. He has researched and written extensively on the sociology of leisure and popular culture and time-use, time pressure, stress and health. He is author of: Social Research and Cultural Policy (1979); Work and Leisure in the Soviet Union (1980); World Leisure Participation (co-editor, 1996); The Effects of Time Use and Time Pressure on Child-Parent Relationships (2000); and Free Time and Leisure Participation: International Perspectives (co-editor, 2005).