This study investigates the theoretical potential of introducing animism into outdoor education, originating from the observation that the term "therapy" is conspicuously absent in Canadian Indigenous Land-Based Pedagogy (LBP). Unlike Western outdoor therapies that often position nature as a passive resource for human healing, LBP operates on an Indigenous ontology—exemplified by the Nuu-chah-nulth concept of Tsawalk (everything is one)—where the land is viewed as kin and an active subject. Consequently, the subject-object duality inherent in the concept of "therapy" renders it inappropriate for describing this reciprocal relationship. By employing the framework of the "ontological turn" in anthropology, particularly the theories of Philippe Descola and Tim Ingold, this paper critiques Western naturalism and re-evaluates animism as a relational mode of being rather than a primitive belief system. The author proposes that fostering an animistic sensibility should become a "meta-goal" for outdoor education, serving as the foundational "ground" for practice rather than just a specific activity. To implement this in Japan without appropriating Indigenous culture, the study bridges LBP with local traditions of Shinbutsu-Shugo (Shinto-Buddhist syncretism) and Keiji Iwata’s anthropology of "passive animism." Iwata’s distinction between institutionalized religion and the experiential "Kami" (nature’s agency) provides a culturally relevant framework. The paper concludes that outdoor education should aim to cultivate a cycle between "sensory animism" (passive reception of nature) and "ethical animism" (active ecological responsibility). This approach offers a pathway to overcome modern dualism and address global environmental issues through a renewed, reciprocal relationship with the more-than-human world.

This study aimed to qualitatively examine how single mothers interpret nature-based experiential activities in child-rearing from their own perspectives. We used the Trajectory Equifinality Approach, which included conducting interviews with three single mothers and analyzing the verbatim data to create a Trajectory Equifinality Model. The results were as follows.

1) Single mothers, influenced by trauma from their former husbands, expressed concerns about their children's behavior. They indicated that they have psychological needs such as “safe and appropriate mother-child separation,” “peer support among children,” and “emotional stability for children.” 2) Through nature-based experiential activities, they had the opportunity to experience a variety of things, such as “being accepted as an individual,” “experiencing safe mother-child separation,” and “meeting reliable role models.” These experiences contributed to the development of positive meanings related to parenting, including “it is okay to have time for myself” and “I can manage as a single parent.” 3) To implement nature-based experiential activities that can support single-parent families, programs tailored to their needs should be established. Economic, human, and material support should be provided. In addition, ensure that staff members are sensitive to trauma, including other single-parent family participants, and setting aside time for parents and children to spend separately are advisable. If implemented, these measures could help establish relationships and frameworks.

Although the “Action Socialization Experience” (ASE) has been used as a team building training program in sports teams, few studies have explored its significance for elite teams from the coaches’ perspective. This study conducted semi-structured interviews with four football coaches who had implemented ASE as a team building program in professional or national teams, aiming to analyze how their intention to adopt ASE developed and how they made sense of the experience.

Using the Modified Grounded Theory Approach (M-GTA), the analysis revealed that the coaches’ intentions were shaped by their own foundational experiences and awareness of team challenges, their expectations for promoting communication between teammates and personal growth through ASE, and their recognition that changes in team atmosphere and individual development contributed to competitive performance.

Importantly, from the perspective of top-level coaches, ASE was valued as an experiential activity that involved physical and psychological challenges in an extraordinary environment outside the routine of competitive sports. ASE was found to foster receptive interpersonal relationships that encouraged open expression of opinions and a willingness to engage in challenges—an especially meaningful outcomes in elite sports teams, where expressing upward influence can be particularly difficult. Participation in ASE, which consists of non-routine activities unrelated to athletic performance, allowed athletes to temporarily detach from the rigid hierarchies typical of elite sports and to develop more egalitarian forms of interaction. The extraordinary and unfamiliar nature of these experiences was seen to promote enhanced communication, the development of receptive relational dynamics, and the expression of individual identity. Taking together, these outcomes have the potential to strengthen team cohesion and, ultimately, contribute to improved athletic performance.

This study conducted a survey targeting participants in nature-based experiential activities as part of a single-parent family support program. It aimed to investigate whether nature-based experiential activities effectively foster children’s self-esteem and mothers’ parenting resilience and whether the effects differ between single-parent and two-parent families. The survey included children who participated in nature-based experiential activities in 2023 and their guardians, as well as children who did not participate as the control group. Both were classified as single-parent and two-parent families. The effects of nature-based experiential activities and differences according to family structure were determined using a three-factor analysis of variance (group [nature experience group vs. control group] × time [pre vs. post] × family structure [single-parent vs. two-parent family]). Factors whose normality could not be assumed were analyzed using nonparametric tests. Additionally, the correlation between parenting resilience and children’s self-esteem was also analyzed. Results showed the following: 1) nature-based experiential activities improved children’s self-esteem and mothers’ parenting resilience, 2) effects on the “self-evaluation and self-acceptance” factor were greater in children from single-parent families, 3) effects on the “social support” factors were greater in mothers from single-parent families, and 4) mothers’ parenting resilience positively correlated with children’s self-esteem.