The Effect of Leisure Time on the Formation of Active Citizenship with the Mediating Role of Social Capital: A Case Study of 15–64-Year-Old Citizens of Ilam

Abstract

This study aimed to examine the effect of leisure time on the formation of active citizenship through the mediating role of social capital among 15–64-year-old citizens of Ilam. This quantitative study employed a descriptive-explanatory, cross-sectional, and applied research design. The statistical population consisted of all 15–64-year-old citizens of Ilam, and the sample size was determined using Cochran’s formula. Although the required sample size was 383, a total of 390 participants were included to ensure sampling adequacy. Data were collected using questionnaires. Leisure time was measured using a 36-item researcher-made questionnaire, active citizenship was assessed through a 14-item researcher-made questionnaire, and social capital was measured using a 36-item instrument based on conventional indicators of formal relations, informal relations, and different dimensions of trust. Data were analyzed using SPSS and AMOS. Exploratory factor analysis was used to identify leisure patterns and dimensions of active citizenship, confirmatory factor analysis was applied to assess the measurement models, and structural equation modeling with bootstrapping was conducted to test the mediating role of social capital. Exploratory factor analysis identified seven leisure patterns and three dimensions of active citizenship. In the direct structural model, leisure time had a significant effect on active citizenship and explained 22% of its variance. After introducing social capital into the model, the path from leisure time to social capital was significant, and the path from social capital to active citizenship was also significant. However, the direct path from leisure time to active citizenship became non-significant in the presence of the mediator. The coefficient of determination showed that leisure time explained 51% of the variance in social capital, while social capital explained 73% of the variance in active citizenship. These inferential results confirmed the full mediating role of social capital. The findings indicate that social capital fully mediates the relationship between leisure time and active citizenship. Therefore, leisure time contributes to active citizenship not directly, but through strengthening social bonds, trust, formal and informal relations, and participatory capacities. Accordingly, urban and cultural policymaking should move beyond a purely recreational understanding of leisure and promote community-based, participatory, and socially integrative leisure programs that enhance social capital and foster active citizenship.