A qualitative exploration of the wilderness experience as a source of spiritual inspiration

Laura M. Fredrickson, Dorothy H. Anderson

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

276 Scopus citations

Abstract

On-site observations, personal field journals, and in-depth interviews were used to examine qualitative aspects of the wilderness experience as a source of spiritual inspiration. Two groups of women kept personal journal accounts of their daily 'lived-experience' during one of two outdoor recreation trips; five participants went to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness in northern Minnesota, and seven went to the Grand Canyon of northern Arizona. Journal entries were content-analysed, exploring the commonalties and idiosyncrasies found between individual accounts. Results were used to develop a general interview guide. Follow-up in-depth personal interviews were conducted within 3 weeks of the conclusion of each trip. Interviews were tape-recorded and transcribed verbatim. Transcripts were content-analysed, looking for commonalties and distinctions between the data. Participants spoke of the expansiveness of the landscape and an awareness of the sheer powers of nature as contributing to a meaningful wilderness experience, which thereby acted as spiritual inspiration for most individuals. Moreover, positive interpersonal interactions combined with complete immersion in a wilderness setting seemed to influence one's proclivity to perceiving elements of the landscape as possible sources of spiritual inspiration.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)21-39
Number of pages19
JournalJournal of Environmental Psychology
Volume19
Issue number1
DOIs
StatePublished - Mar 1999

Bibliographical note

Funding Information:
Partial support for this research was provided by the USDA Forest Service North Central Forest Experiment Station.

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'A qualitative exploration of the wilderness experience as a source of spiritual inspiration'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this