Does Active Leisure Improve Worker Well-Being? An Experimental Daily Diary Approach

Engagement in leisure activities during non-work hours has been postulated to benefit worker well-being through need fulfillment and satisfaction during leisure experiences. This study explored whether an active leisure intervention among employees improves daily leisure domain-specific need fulfillment and enjoyment, which subsequently promotes workers’ global subjective well-being. This study used an experimental daily diary approach, which randomly assigned employed participants ( N = 79) to engage in either an active leisure intervention for 1 week or receive no intervention. Using multilevel path analysis, we found that participants in the active leisure intervention group experienced higher levels of life satisfaction and general positive affect after 1 week compared to those in the no intervention group, after controlling pre-intervention experiences. The active leisure intervention was effective in increasing competence and autonomy during leisure, and competence mediated the effect of active leisure intervention on life satisfaction. Through the use of a novel combination of experimental and daily diary designs, these findings offer initial evidence that an active leisure intervention might be effective in a working population.