Recreation and Leisure Studies Ranks Third in North America in Authorships

The University of Georgia ranks third in the number of authorships of journal articles and conference papers in the field of recreation and leisure studies, according to an analysis of the 41 leading universities in North America published in the fall 2004 issue of the journal Leisure Sciences.

The rankings, listed in Edgar Jackson's article titled, “Individual and Institutional Concentration of Leisure Research in North America,” were determined by the number of authorships in the 1990s on the subject of leisure studies.

Jackson, a researcher at the University of Alberta in Edmonton, Canada, identifies key characteristics of leisure scholars in North America and uses patterns derived from data about publication activity for discussion about leisure studies research at an institutional level. He found that UGA had 192 authorships during the 1990s on leisure studies.

“The volume of authorship reflected in the number three ranking is generated by a relatively small faculty (five), albeit in collaboration with graduate students, and is clearly a statement that we are near the top of leisure studies programs in North America in research productivity, at least by the authorship standard,” said Douglas Kleiber, a College of Education professor and department head from 1989-2001.

The University of Waterloo ranked first in authorships with 318, while Texas A&M University was second with 203. The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign ranked fourth with 190, and Pennsylvania State University was fifth with 184.

The UGA program, which was begun in 1965, offers undergraduate, master's and doctoral degrees in recreation and leisure studies. Students learn about research and teaching in the areas of therapeutic recreation, leisure service administration, recreation resource management and the study of leisure behavior.

Friday, December 17, 2004
WRITER: Nicole Richardson, 706/542-5889, nrichard@uga.edu
CONTACT: Douglas Kleiber, 706/542-4330, dkleiber@coe.uga.edu