Camp & human behavior

Camp gives kids a world of good." We all subscribe to that belief. Camp for me was a place where I learned to confront my fears of being away from home, where I met and learned to appreciate people who came from different backgrounds, and where I began to feel confident in my leadership abilities. Good things don't just happen at camp, however. They are fostered.

Camps reflect a microcosm of all types of behavior where social values are reproduced and camper and staff behaviors are shaped. If camps are to "give a world of good," we must strive to develop positive self-esteem in campers and staff and nurture a sense of community. We want campers and staff to leave camp with a sense of empowerment transferable to living in society outside camp.

In addition, both individual comportment and group interaction reflect human behavior. Individual conduct affects group function. The programs and techniques undertaken to help an individual develop self-affirming behavior influences the entire camp group. Similarly, the peer pressure and community that develops or fails to develop in a camp also affects the individual functioning of campers and staff.

Along with the positive potential of camp is the potential for camp to be a frightening and stigmatizing place. Positive behavior needs to be reinforced to create warm and caring environments instead of cold and scary ones.

This theme issue of Camping Magazine focuses on aspects of individual and group behavior. Behavior manifested by campers and staff is complex. How boring camps would be if everyone acted the same way! Because human behavior is complicated and often unpredictable, we need to understand its complexities.

Almost anything related to being in camp has implications for human behavior. Thus, a broad range of topics could have fit this special issue: group dynamics and behavior, motivational factors, behavior management, leadership development, personality differences and influences, cultural impacts on behavior, and factors affecting self-esteem.

Features

Homesickness is an inevitable behavior in camp. Pravda reviews the basics of homesickness and offers techniques to make the separation from home and adjustment to camp less stressful.

Bedini, an educator who has researched attitudes toward people with disabilities, describes how to make camps places where people with disabilities feel welcome. She offers suggestions on how campers and staff can learn respect for people with disabilities as well as for other individuals stigmatized by society.

Finegold did her Masters degree research in social work by studying a camp program in Texas designed for families with pediatrics AIDS. She focused on the validation that families receive when given an opportunity to meet, interact, and recreate with others who are in a similar situation. Not only did the camp give families a respite from their daily challenges, but it provided them with a sense of community. Camp directors may want to consider implementing such a camp by working with local social service or community organizations.

Environments where campers and staff feel good about themselves and feel a part of a caring and friendly community don't just happen. "Camp gives kids a world of good" when camp professionals focus on fostering individual and group growth and development.

COPYRIGHT 1995 American Camping Association
COPYRIGHT 2004 Gale Group