Overview
The use of case study methodology was an important aspect of the National Camp Evaluation Project (NCEP), a federally funded research investigation conducted nationwide (14 states) to determine the effects of one-week residential camp programs on the performance of campers with disabilities (ages 7-21 with mild to severe levels of impairment). The NCEP focused on measuring the affective (socio-emotional) and recreation skill (i.e, level of independence) dimensions of camper performance through use of both quantitative and qualitative measures. This abstract summarizes the qualitative research of the NCEP, which used the Outdoor Case Study Method (OCSM) to investigate the impact of camp programs on participants with disabilities.

Method
During 1993-94, the NCEP developed and successfully piloted the OCSM at a major residential outdoor school program in Portland, Oregon serving students with mild to severe disabling conditions. From these efforts, the data collection procedures, the protocols, and the methods for analyzing and synthesizing various data received from case studies were developed for the national study. Subsequently, during the summers of 1994 and 1995, 73 case studies were conducted nationwide with approximately 5 campers at each of 15 residential camps serving campers with various types and levels of impairment. Data collection and analysis procedures for the case studies were identical for all 15 camps. Project trained research assistants at each camp were primarily responsible for the data collection. Their tasks included: a) on-site observations of the case study campers' performance during their participation in selected recreation activities, b) counselor interviews regarding their case study campers' achievements by the end of the camp session, and c) parent/guardian interviews regarding changes, if any, in their child's performance one to three weeks following camp. After receiving completed case study forms from the camp sites, the Project Staff directed trained Research Assistants to assist them in the recording, analysis, and synthesis of all case study data. An overall summary of the NCEP's case study results follows under related research questions:

Results
1. What level of performance did case study campers demonstrate during camp activities as judged by on-site observers? Results: Analysis of on-site observer data describing camper affect (i.e., level of enjoyment/participation) and recreation skill achievement (i.e., level of independence) indicates the case study subjects a) highly enjoyed and actively participated in most recreation activities, and b) were relatively independent in performing outdoor recreation skills across a wide range of program activities.

2. What changes in personal development occurred for case study campers during the camp session as judged by their counselors? Analysis of counselor interview data describing their camper's achievements at camp indicates the case study subjects a) enjoyed, became more motivated, and increased their participation in recreation activities, b) showed improvements in several areas of personal development (e.g., self-esteem, self-reliance), and c) overall, made the greatest growth in the areas of social interactions and communication with others.

3. What changes in personal development occurred for case study campers following the camp experience as judged by their parents? Analysis of parent /guardian interview data describing their child's achievements at home indicates the case study subjects: a) enjoyed participating in home activities and were more motivated, showed improvements in several areas of personal development (e.g., social interactions, communication with others), and c) overall, showed the greatest growth in the areas of self-reliance and self-esteem.

Conclusion
Case studies of campers using the OCSM revealed that, overall, campers with mild, moderate, and severe disabilities made notable achievements in both the affective and skill domains as judged by impartial observers, and their counselors and parents. Observations of the campers during the program confirmed they fully enjoyed and actively participated in outdoor recreation , and achieved relatively high levels of skill independence in various activities (including campers with more disabling conditions). Comparisons of counselor and parent interview data found both groups to be in agreement that their case study charges were more actively involved, showed increased motivation (e.g., initiative), and made observable improvements in all areas of personal development studied. In summary , the research findings revealed that a) campers fully enjoyed and participated in camp activities, b) positive changes in campers' personal development occurred at camp and generalized to the home setting, c) increased independence was a major outcome of camping for the case study subjects, and d) one-week specialized residential camp programs were effective. The case study approach (i.e., focus on qualitative data) proved to be an evaluation procedure of particular importance in that it helped validate the objective measurement results of the study, plus it enhanced project efforts to better determine the overall benefits of residential camping for persons with disabilities.

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