Flow Dan Palac, MA, Provisional LCPThorpe’s focus in Chap. 9 “I hope to reveal the sensuous snowboarding experience as ‘nothing but the body, the principal means whereby the body mingles with the world and with itself, overflows its borders’”. (Thorpe, quoting Serres, p. 222). Ethnography that illuminates “epiphenomena” to help bring snowboarding experience “closer to our skin” (Thorpe, p. 221) Every domain of sensory experience is also an arena for structuring social roles and interactions.Thorpe is interested to “explore the ‘sensual relations’ of social life within various geographies”)? (Thorpe, p. 220) Take into account the somatic (of the body), multisensual (as many senses as possible) in research; metasense “…Unlike freestyle riding, which is heavily visual, big mountain riding relies on feeling, being in the moment, and experiencing everything that is around you; the snow, the mountain, the trees, the speed, the wind, the airtime.” (Holt, 2005, p. 91)Affect, affective Affect: Feelings, emotions, sensations, experiences, meanings Expressions such as music or snowboarding can transmit affect Ethnographic work on affective experiences of snowboarding Take into account the somatic (of the body), multisensual (as many senses as possible) in research. Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi explored why increases in material well-being don’t increase happiness  Why do people, societies persevere without any reward or fame?  What is it about civilizations that give people ecstasy, new realities?  Csikszentmihalyi’s answer is related to our study of affect and the sensual in snowboarding cultureCsikszentmihalyi coined the term “flow” because many used this word when they spoke of effortless spontaneous state of ecstasy; merging with an activity that is seemingly difficult/”work”, yet loving it. From Csikszentmihalyi: Flow thesis: People do not toil at something because of a reward. They toil because they like the feeling of intensity and exhilaration from involvement in specific activities. Flow usually happens not during relaxing moments of leisure or entertainment, but rather when we are actively involved in a difficult enterprise, in a task that stretches our mental and/or physical abilities.FLOW  a state of mind that captures the very essence of happiness;  a process of centering one’s involvement in a given reality;  has a motivational power;  a source of personal and social energy;  Exists in individuals and societies (e.g., sub-culture of snowboarding)FLOW  in the flow state, you feel exhilarated, satisfied, creative and concentrated, no matter what task is at hand; you are so absorbed in an activity that nothing else matters but the moment.  involves a sense of discovery and creativity;  pushes person /society to higher levels of performance;  person/society may feel they are transported to new reality-- this new reality may be experienced in slow motion; sense of time altered.Csikszentmihalyi believes that individuals and large communities may restructure activities or consciousness to make flow possible, to improve the quality of experience. In part, he argues that flow is enhanced when the self is transformed by complex situations/activities/experiences; when the self is pushed to higher levels of performance, fantastic states of consciousness are achieved. Immersion in a field, high level of expertise enhances flowChallenge: “How to put flow into everyday life?” (Csikszentmihalyi) Csikszentmihalyi’s TED (Technology, Entertainment and Design) talk: http://www.ted.com/talks/mihaly_csikszentmihalyi_on_flowDISCUSSION  In what “microflow” activity did you engage? In what situation was the “microflow” activity used? What were the qualities of this situation that make it a non-flow experience for you?  How did you make the “microflow” activity provide challenge for you while you were engaged in it? How could you make it provide even more challenge in the future as you become more skilled at the “microflow” activity?  How do you create flow in situations in which you are