A Leisure Time Educational Tool: Mind and Intelligence Games

The purpose of this study is to determine the opinions of the participants regarding the use of mind and intelligence games as a leisure time educational tool. The study population consists of a total of 97 mind and intelligence games trainers and referees as 58 women and 37 men with an average age of 38.103 who voluntarily participated in the study. In the study, the phenomenological design was preferred in order to have an in-depth understanding, and a semi-structured interview form, one of the qualitative data collection tools, was used. Content and descriptive analysis methods were used for the analysis of qualitative data. As a result of the analysis of the data obtained, the participants stated that they described mind and intelligence games as a leisure time educational tool. Another remarkable finding of the study is that the opinions of the participants regarding the acquisitions of mind and intelligence games consist of seven different themes: socialization, problem solving, self-consciousness, self-awareness, self-confidence, skill acquisition and awareness of using leisure time. As a result of the study, according to the opinions of the participants, mind and intelligence games are beneficial for individuals in the learning environment, offer the opportunity to learn by living and contribute to the development of social and cognitive skills. Accordingly, it was suggested to add the course of mind and intelligence games in the curricula of the institutions providing sports education.