Goffman Goes Rock Climbing: Using Creative Fiction to Explore the Presentation of Self in Outdoor Education (Erving Goffman) (Report‪)‬

Outdoor education literature has a short, but rich, history of using philosophical (e.g. Hunt, 1990; Wurdinger, 1997; Allison, 2002), anthropological (e.g. Andrews, 1999; Bell, 2003; Venable, 1997), and sociological (e.g. Beames, 2005; Zink & Burrows, 2006; Pike & Beames, 2007) lenses to examine practice. Despite the attention given to traditional lines of enquiry, there remains much scope for new theoretical interpretation of the day-to-day issues faced by outdoor centre managers, instructors, and teachers. The outdoor education sector is faced with the challenge of being able to communicate effectively across disciplines, with professionals engaged in diverse practices (see Zink and Burrows, 2006). This paper explores the sociological framework of dramaturgy, as conceptualised by the late Erving Goffman (1). The rationale for such enquiry is a belief that in gaining a deeper theoretical understanding of their fieldwork, outdoor educators may be able to deliver more meaningful educational programmes. Although Goffman's own research concentrated on areas as diverse as rural villages, asylums, and casinos, we attempt to illustrate how the conceptual framework outlined in his seminal text The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life (1959), may offer helpful ways of examining the social interaction inherent in an outdoor education course.