Research update: making the most of volunteers: a study shows volunteers are giving their time in exchange for community and social benefits.

Volunteer labor is extremely valuable to an organization because it provides its administrators with the ability to sustain services, expand the quantity, quality and diversity of these services, while keeping a project's budget within its pre-specified limits (Strigas & Jackson, 2004). For individuals associated with voluntary organizations, offering time, services and expertise helps increase self-esteem, facilitates new relationships, develops skills and abilities, reduces depression levels, and builds healthier attitudes about aging (Shin & Kleiner, 2003).

However, one of the predominant benefits of volunteering is a stronger sense of social and community cohesion. Communities that face challenging problems rely heavily on volunteer labor to overcome needs and difficulties, improve their public image and promote social harmony, understanding, equality and tolerance.

According to 2004 Bureau of Labor Statistics data collected for its monthly Current Population Survey (CPS, U.S Department of Labor), about 64.5 million (28 percent) of the population age 16 or older had volunteered for various organizations at least once during the previous year. This volunteer labor force spent a median of 52 hours on volunteer activities. Considering the estimated value of a volunteer hour is currently up to $17.55 (Independent Sector, 2005), it is obvious that volunteers have an enormous financial impact on the fabric of the U.S. society.

People in the 35- to 44-year-old age bracket (34.2 percent of the U.S. population) were found to be the most likely to offer time and expertise in order to serve various social causes, among them the enhancement of park and recreation services. This group was followed closely by the 45- to 54-year-old group (32.8 percent) and the 55- to 64-year-old group (30.1 percent). The survey also discovered that teenagers demonstrated a relatively high volunteer rate (29.4 percent), which is attributed to the new emphasis in schools on volunteer activities.

The study also found Caucasians volunteer at higher rates than any other ethnic/racial group in the United States; part-time employees are more likely to participate in volunteer activities than full-timers; and married people volunteer at higher rates than people who are divorced, single or live with a partner.

Based on this data, and considering research reports on volunteerism for park and recreation agencies from countries that resemble the characteristics of the U.S. (i.e. Canada, Australia), the profile of the typical community sport volunteer is an individual between 34- and 45-years-old with a higher education degree, a full-time job and an annual income that exceeds $60,000 (Doherty, 2005). That person most likely has participated in organized sport activities in the past and was surrounded by people who volunteered.

Findings from the National Survey of Giving, Volunteering, and Participating (Imagine Canada, 2000) also provide an interesting insight on this issue. The survey results seem to align themselves with results from generic studies in volunteerism regarding the predominant motives for volunteering services: time and expertise.

The survey found that volunteers for sport and recreation offer their assistance because they want to help a cause they believe in (94 percent), want to develop skills and acquire experiences in order to contribute to the leisure organization's cause (87 percent) and because someone they are affiliated with (significant others, children, etc.) is affected by the leisure organization and its programs (76 percent) (Doherty, 2005).

These results are greatly supported by a number of volunteerism studies on recreational sport events, conducted by Strigas and Jackson (2001, 2003). According to these studies, the primary motives for volunteering were because it was fun to volunteer services for recreational sport events; the volunteer wanted to help make the event a success; volunteering creates a better society; the volunteer wanted to put something back in my community; and volunteering makes the volunteer feel better about himself or herself.

Strigas (2001) has also proposed a motivational model that broadens the existing knowledge about the motives of volunteer labor in sport and recreation events. The study results advocate the existence of five major motivational factors that explain volunteerism.

The first factor is called "Social Functions of Leisure," which supports Tedrick's and Henderson's theory (1989) that volunteering is better conceptualized as a leisure choice. It involves motives related to the individual's needs for social interaction and interpersonal relationships, as well as motives related to the individual's need to relax or look into various leisure choices (i.e. "I wanted to relieve the stress and the tension of everyday life," "I wanted to develop relationships with others," "I wanted to discover new interests").

The second factor is labeled "Material" and involves motives that permit volunteers "to carry out a rational calculus of expected utility gain," in exchange for their services. These rewards can be material goods or services (some with a monetary value), or even social status that can easily be translated into a "reward" that carries a material value (i.e. "I wanted to make new contacts that might help my business or career.")

The third factor is called "Egoistic" and involves motives related to the individual's needs of self actualization, self-esteem, and achievement ("Volunteering makes me feel better about myself," "I wanted to help make the event a success").

The fourth factor is labeled "Purposive" and involves motives related to the desire of the volunteers to aid the leisure organization in the accomplishment of their goals, and contribute to the recreational sport event and the community ("I am genuinely concerned about the particular club I am serving" "I adhere to the organizational committee's specific goals").

The fifth factor is termed "External Influences" and assesses the extent to which volunteers donate time due to factors outside of their immediate control, like family traditions or decisions by significant others. ("My friends/ family/significant others are also volunteering," "I was asked by others to volunteer").

In her work, A Profile of Community Sport Volunteers, Doherty (2005) proposed a motivational model for volunteering that further supports the work of Strigas et. al. displayed above. That model identifies three levels of volunteer motives: a core motive that reflects altruism in volunteering, primary motives related to volunteer's personal needs and interests, and, lastly, social and personal development motives that constitute secondary motives for sport volunteering at the community level.

Park and recreation administrators should also look at factors that discourage potential or existing volunteers from becoming involved. This raises a few questions: why don't people in the community volunteer their services for the leisure organization? Why don't existing volunteers volunteer more hours? And why do existing volunteers choose to discontinue offering services, time or expertise?

Research has provided some indications and potential answers to these questions. However, it is imperative to treat each leisure organization as a unique case (Doherty, 2005; Lasby, 2004; Sharpe, 2003; Wilson, 2003). The most predominant answers indicate the volunteer had a poor previous experience with volunteering; the volunteer has a lack of time because family, work or other commitments; the volunteer had developed a false understanding of what was involved in his or her volunteer assignment; there was a perceived lack of skills and abilities on behalf of volunteers (or prospective volunteers); volunteers were disappointed in the way the leisure organization is functioning; increased demands on volunteers from volunteer coordinators; and the leisure organization may do a poor job in recruiting volunteers and lack a specific volunteer marketing plan (e.g. the agency does not ask people to volunteer, does not adequately communicate to them its mission and vision for the future, etc.).

The growing use of volunteer labor in different facets of everyday life creates a compelling need for people who are involved with leisure organizations, to review and re-evaluate the existing knowledge regarding volunteer activity. Recruiting and retaining volunteer labor are primary marketing problems (Green & Chalip, 1998; Strigas & Jackson, 2003). It is important for the park and recreation profession to develop the profile of the leisure and recreation volunteer. Agencies could use this knowledge to design their marketing efforts in a way that could appeal persuasively to this free labor during recruitment time.

References

Brown, V. (2003, September). Ten must-have strategies. Association Management, 55(9), 24.

Bureau of Labor Statistics/U.S Department of Labor (2004). Volunteering in the United States, 2004 (USDL 04-2503). Retrieved September 1, 2005, from www.bls.gov/news.release/volun.nr0. htm

Doherty, A. (2005). A profile of community sport volunteers. Retrieved on August 1, 2005 from http://216.13.76.142/PROntario/PDF/reports/Final Report_ExecutiveSummary_PhaseOne.pdf

Green B.C., & Chalip L (1998). Sport volunteers: Research agenda and application. Sport Marketing Quartely, 7(2),14-23

Imagine Canada (2000). National Survey of Giving, Votunteering, and Participating. Retrieved August 1, 2005, from www.givingandvolunteering. ca/

Independent Sector (2001). Giving and Volunteering in the United States. Washington, D. C.: Author.

Independent Sector (2005). Research: Value of volunteer time. Retrieved September 1, 2005, from www.independentsector.org/programs/ research/volunteer_time.html

Lasby, D. (2004). The Volunteer spirit in Canada: Motivations and barriers. Toronto: Canadian Centre for Philanthropy.

Mitchell, M., & Taylor, S. (2004, Jan/Feb). Internal marketing: Key to successful volunteer programs. Nonprofit World, 22(1), 25.

Shin, S., & Kleiner, B. (2003). How to manage unpaid volunteers in organizations. Management Research News, 26 (2-4), 63-71.

Strigas, A. (2001). The assessment of motives and the development of a typology of motivational factors for volunteers in marathon running events. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, Florida State University, Tallahassee.

Strigas, A. & Jackson, N. (2003). Motivating volunteers to serve and succeed: Design and results of a pilot study that explores demographics and motivational factors in sport volunteerism. International Sports Journal 7(1), 111-121.

Strigas, A. & Jackson, N. (2004). Assessment of Motivational Patterns and Demographic characteristics for College Student Volunteers. ICHPED-SD Journal, 40, (4), 60-63.

Tedrick, T., & Henderson, K. (1989). Volunteers in leisure. Reston, VA: American Association for Hearth, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance.

Wilson, B. (2003). Modeling the decision to become a coach. In Nichols, G. (Ed.), Volunteers in sport, pp. 19-41. Eastbourne, U.K: Leisure Studies Association.

Research into action: How to Boost Volunteer Satisfaction

In order to understand why volunteers don't return or stay for long periods of time, a full understanding of what motivates people to get involved with their perspective organization requires volunteer coordinators to employ some of the following strategies to boost recruitment and volunteer satisfaction (Shin & Kleiner, 2003):

* Develop and articulate well-defined organizational goals and objectives.

* Develop and share with prospective and existing volunteers a vision regarding individual and organizational success.

* Match assignments with the specific skills and abilities each of the volunteers possess.

* Monitor and control the work load for each of the volunteers--increasing demands for help from the same volunteer may force that person to drop out.

* Create opportunities for volunteer appreciation and recognition.

* Allocate resources for the development of written materials (manuals).

* Involve volunteers in the evaluation process and assess them on their performance.

* Use relationship marketing to target potential volunteers on an individual basis.

* Attract volunteers whose personal values relate to those of the leisure organization.

Athanassios (Ethan) Strigas is an assistant professor of Sports Management at Indiana State University. His interests include sport volunteerism, sport marketing and finance, sport diplomacy and policy development. He has published his work in such journals as Sport Management International, International Sports Journal and the Journal of ICHPER. In summer 2004, he worked for the Tae Kwon Do Federation at the Olympic Games in Athens, Greece.