Focus on Hobbies of Academically Motivated Adolescents

Abstract

This research aimed to explore why academically motivated adolescents engage in certain hobbies and what they mean to them. The empirical findings of a broader study about the everyday life of adolescents in Serbia showed a positive connection between adolescents' hobby engagement and academic achievements and motivation. Therefore, the sample of this research consisted of selected academically-oriented secondary school students, participants of the extracurricular educational program in Petnica Science Center. A Focus group was conducted with a whole psychology program group (12 female, 2 male; average age 17) in February 2020. The semi-structured discussion about hobbies was encouraged and the answers were categorized into 222 codes in consensus of two researchers. The thematic analysis revealed six major themes concerning hobbies: 1. Personal growth, 2. Professional development, 3. Factors supporting engagement, 4. Dedicated time, 5. Managing resources, 6. Promoting products. The benefits of the hobbies were recognized in emotional regulation, fun, health, improving memory and concentration, identity and skills development. For some, hobbies were a source of early incomes and preparation for future profession. Intrinsic motivation, creativity, facultative nature of hobbies, and talent were recognized as the most important factors of engagement and perseverance in these activities. Furthermore, most participants had started practicing hobbies in childhood, and according to their experiences, it was more important what hobby meant to them than how often or regularly they practiced it. Participants recognized that required resources for practicing hobbies depend on the type of the activity and could be managed or compensated in accordance with motivation. Finally, social media and public appearances were predominantly used for product promotion, exchange of ideas, and feedback. The most important outcome of group discussion was the co-construction of the definition of hobbies as creative, self-structured, enjoyable, productive activity that requires interest and continuous effort. The aforementioned definition was supported by the theoretically framed conception of a hobby. This focus group contributed to a better understanding of the role of hobbies in everyday lives and positive development of academically motivated adolescents.