Careen Yarnal
Assistant Professor
812 Ford Building
Phone: 814-863-5559
Fax: 814-867-1751
Ph. D. from Penn State University
Current Research Interests
Leisure, mature women, and well-being
Leisure and positive emotions
Women and leisure across the lifespan
Women and travel
Serious leisure
Recent Courses Taught
RPTM 120 Leisure and Human Development
RPTM 210 Introduction to Commercial Recreation and Tourism
RPTM 597A Leisure and Culture
Recent Publications
Yarnal, C., & Chick., G., & Kerstetter, D. (In press) "I did not have time to play growing up ... so this is my play time. It's the best thing I've ever done for myself: What is play to older women?" Leisure Sciences.
Yarnal, C., & Chick., G., & Datillo, J. (2006) More false dichotomies: Play, leisure, environmental enrichment, and important science questions. Leisure Sciences 28(5) 487-492.
Yarnal, C., Kerstetter, D., Chick, G., & Hutchinson, S. (In press). The Red Hat Society®: An exploration of play and masking in older women’s lives. Play and Culture. .
Yarnal, C. (In press). The Red Hat Society®: Exploring the role of play, liminality, and communitas in older women’s lives. Journal of Women and Aging..
Morais, D., Kerstetter, D., & Yarnal, C. (2006). The love triangle: Loyal relationships among providers, customers, and their friends. Journal of Travel Research, 44(4), 379-386.
Yarnal, C., Hutchinson, S., & Chow, H. (2006)."I could probably run a marathon right now": Embodiment, space and young women's leisure experience. Leisure Sciences, 28(2), 133-162.
Yarnal. C., & Kerstetter, D. (2005). “Casting off”: An exploration of cruise ship space, group tour behavior, and social interaction. . Journal of Travel Research, 43(4), 368-379.
Yarnal, C. (2004). “Missing the Boat?” A playfully serious look at a group cruise tour. . Leisure Sciences, 21(3), 349-372.
Selected Publications
Son, J. Kerstetter, D., Yarnal, C., & Baker, B. (In press). Promoting older women's health and well-being through leisure environments: what have we learned from the The Red Hat Society®. Journal of Women and Aging.
Yarnal, C., Kerstetter, D., & Yen, I. (2005). So why haven’t you taken a cruise lately?” An exploration of constraints to cruising. Tourism Review International, 8(3), 281-296.
Kerstetter, D., Yen, I., & Yarnal, C. (2005). Plowing uncharted waters: A study of perceived constraints to cruise travel. Tourism Analysis, 10(2), 137-150.
Yarnal, C., and Dowler, L. (2003). Who is answering the call? Volunteer firefighting as serious leisure. Leisure/Loisir. Journal of the Canadian Association for Leisure Studies, 27(3-4), 161-190.