Integrative review: Vacations and subjective well-being

Abstract

Leisure engagement plays a key role in individuals’ well-being. While the majority of research focuses on the health and wellness benefits of everyday leisure participation, in recent years, vacation-taking, as an extraordinary leisure type, attracts scholarly interest from various disciplines to investigate how it contributes to individuals’ subjective well-being. Nevertheless, there is still no cohesive understanding of this relationship. In this integrative review, we reviewed 125 articles on this topic, paid particular attention to understanding the different ways and conditions under which people can benefit from vacation-taking, and we highlighted the potential pathways (i.e., how and why) through which leisure vacation can increase well-being. Meanwhile, we offer a future research agenda including cross-level investigations of vacationers’ well-being, integrating the influences from individual, professional, and social forces.