Free-time management amongst generation y students

Abstract

The increased amount and importance of free time is widely acknowledged in the literature, yet there appears to be a lack of research into free-time management. This article reports on a study undertaken to determine how Generation Y students manage the use of their free time. In order to address this shortfall in the literature, an empirical study, based on previous theoretical discussions regarding free-time management, was conducted to analyse how free time is managed, by the students. The Generation Y cohort, defined as individuals born between 1986 and 2005, accounted for 38 percent of the South African population in 2013. A quantitative research approach was employed, whereby a structured, self-administered questionnaire was used to gather data on the perceptions towards free-time management from a sample of 400 Generation Y students across three South African public registered higher education institutions’ campuses situated in the Gauteng province, South Africa. Based on an empirical investigation of the perceptions of Generation Y students, the findings of the study provide important insights into this cohort’s management of free time. The findings of this study reveal that students do engage in freetime management. Universities and educators can play an important role in providing leisure education by supporting and encouraging students to better plan and manage the use of their free time.