Building Sense of Belonging through Informal Recreation Participation

Sense of belonging among undergraduate college students improves the likelihood of retention and graduation, along with the overall association with positive mental health and well-being. College students build a sense of belonging with their peers through various forms of involvement opportunities, including informal campus recreation activities. This qualitative study investigated the relationship between sense of belonging and participation in informal recreation activities among 18 undergraduate college students. Findings from semi-structured interviews indicate that participation in informal recreation helped participants to create, build, and maintain friendships, and improved participants’ sense of belonging. Recommendations for practice include facilitating greater participant interaction among peers and faculty with similar recreational interests, utilizing existing facilities to incorporate informal activities, and increasing and centralizing various campus services.