Fun with Friends: Evaluating a Summer Camp Experience
Shana Morro
California State University, Northridge
Introduction
Camp offers a safe, fun experience for youth that
can be a foundation for positive growth and
development (Thurber, Bialeschki, Whitaker,
Henderson, & Scanlin, 2007) in an environment
conducive to children exploring new activities and
becoming more adventurous (American Camp
Association, 2005) that may be absent in school
settings (Merryman, Mezei, Bush & Weinsten, 2012).
Purpose
• Assess the level of satisfaction that campers
experience while attending the AdventureCamp
program at AdventurePlex
• Explore the relationship between the camper’s age
and their level of satisfaction regarding camp
activities.
Methods
Sample / Design
• Study participants (N=103) included a
convenience sample of youth, male (63.1%) and
female (35.9%), ranging in age from 4-12 years
old.
• Participants attended at least one week of
summer day camp at AdventurePlex in
Manhattan Beach, California.
• One shot case study (XO); survey at the end of
the camp week.
Concepts / Measures
• Self-designed, self-report survey not tested for
reliability or validity used to measure activities
specific to AdventureCamp.
• Concepts of interest included overall camp
experience, satisfaction with activities, and youth
outcomes (ages 8-12 only).
Discussion
Results
Table 1
Limitations
Pearson Product-moment Correlation Between Measures
of Overall Camp Satisfaction and Gender and Age
• Convenience sample from a single summer day
camp.
Scale
1
2
3
1. Overall Camp Satisfaction
-
.115
.213*
-
.032
2. Gender
3. Younger Campers (ages 4-7) &
Older Campers (ages 8-12)
-
Conclusion
* p < 0.05 (2-tailed).
• Youth have fun at camp, with the
AdventureRoom, Beach, and Field Trips being
the most well-liked activities while yoga, songs,
and Zumba are the least well-liked activities.
There was a small, positive correlation
between age and overall satisfaction with
camp activities, r = .21, n = 103, p = .03, with
older campers associated with higher levels of
overall satisfaction with camp activities.
Table 2
Pearson Product-moment Correlation Between Measures of
Overall Camp Satisfaction and Youth Outcomes
Scale
1
1. Overall Camp Satisfaction
-
2. Social Development
3. Self-esteem Development
Campers Say
Which Activity Is The Most Fun?
90
% Of Overall Fun
80
4. Self-explore Development
• Study design and measures only allow for
participants to respond during one time period
and limits the possible range of responses.
2
3
4
5
• Contrary to previous literature, youth self-esteem
was not related to camp attendance. The
question used in this survey to measure selfesteem was more focused on the self-efficacy
motive which refers to the amount that
individuals perceive they have the capability of
influencing the environment around them (Stets
& Burke, 2014). The formulation of the question
may have influenced the results.
.504** .019 .647** .527**
-
.220 .641** .621**
-
.233
.130
-
.645**
5. Physical Development
-
** p < 0.01 (2-tailed).
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
There was a large, positive correlation between
youth outcomes and satisfaction, with higher
levels of satisfaction associated with increased
physical development (r = .53, n = 52, p <0.01),
social development (r = .50, n = 52, p <0.01),
and self-exploration development (, r = .65, n =
52, p <0.01).
References
1. American Camp Association. (2005). Directions: Youth development outcomes of the camp
experience. Martinsville, IN: American Camp Association.
2. Merryman, M., Mezei, A., & Weinstein, M. (2012). The effects of a summer camp
experience on factors of resilience in at-risk youth. Open Journal of Occupational Therapy,
1(1), 3.
3. Thurber, C., Bialeschki, M., Whitaker, L., Henderson, K. , & Scanlin, M. (2007). Summer
camp experiences: Parental perceptions of youth development outcomes. Journal of
Family Issues, 28(8), 987-1007.
4. Stets, J., & Burke, P. (2014). Self-esteem and identities. Sociological Perspectives, 57(4),
409-433.
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