Empowerment and resilience: A multi-method approach to understanding processes and outcomes of adventure education program experiences

This study examined the influence of participation in an adventure education program on participants' perceived level of empowerment and resilience, assess the relationship between specific program characteristics and these variables, and understand how participants interpret their experience with regard to empowerment and resilience. Psychological empowerment and resilience was measured before and after participation in an Outward Bound course. Semi-structured interviews were conducted four- to six-months after course completion in an effort to better understand how participants interpret their experience relative to empowerment and resilience. Subjects for this study consisted of participants who completed an Outward Bound course during the summer 2007. Students enrolled in a lower-division general education course at Indiana University served as a comparison group. Study instruments included a modified version of Spreitzer's (1995) empowerment scale, Wagnild and Young's (1993) Resilience Scale, and Characteristics of the Experience Scale (Sibthorp, 2000). Data were analyzed using ANCOVA and repeated measures ANOVA to determine overall differences in the dependent variables following participation in Outward Bound. Correlation was used to determine the relationship between program characteristics and outcomes of empowerment and resilience. For the interview analysis, significant phrases pertaining to empowerment and resilience were identified, coded and formulated into meanings, and clustered into emerging themes.;A significant positive increase in both perceived psychological empowerment and resilience was found for the Outward Bound group. No significant differences were obtained for the comparison group. Characteristics of the experience most highly correlated with empowerment were (1) opportunities to develop/practice skills; (2) responsibilities participants had; and (3) help received from the group and staff. "Debriefings" were the component most highly correlated with both empowerment and resilience. Qualitative findings supported the quantitative results. Feelings of accomplishment and a sense of achievement were frequently described by participants as contributing to outcomes related to both empowerment and resilience. Changes in participants' behavior following and attributed to their Outward Bound course were also captured and ranged from subtle to dramatic. Results of this study not only capture whether change occurred in participants, but also offer information about how that change occurred, as well as what behavioral changes participants exhibited after and as a result of their experience.