Volunteer Functions, Satisfaction, Commitment and Intention to Leave Government Volunteering

1. Volunteer Functions, Satisfaction, Commitment and Intention to Leave Government Volunteering Doctoral Dissertation Defense Hearing Gisela Salas December 5, 2008

2. CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION TO THE STUDY • Purpose • Definition of Terms • Justification • Delimitations and Scope

3. Introduction and Background • Volunteers – crucial to the success of events and organizations • 60 million volunteers • $280 billion value • Increasing need and less spirited people • (Putnam, 2000; Baker, 1995)

4. Purpose • Descriptive • Exploratory (Comparative) 3. Explanatory (Correlational)

5. Definition of Terms • Volunteer Characteristics • Organizational Characteristics • Volunteer Motives • Satisfaction • Organizational Commitment • Intention to Leave

6. JustificationSignificanceResearchableFeasible

7. Delimitations and Scope • Marion County • Active Volunteers • Present at meetings or assigned work locations • >18 years of age • Read & write English

8. CHAPTER II • Literature Review, • Theoretical Framework, • Research Questions, and • Hypotheses

9. Literature Review Types of Volunteering History and Seminal Works • Alexis de Tocqueville, 1835 • Needs Theory (Maslow, 1943) • Hygiene Theory (Herzberg et al., 1959) • Achievement Theory (McClelland, 1976)

10. Literature Review Functional Approach (Clary and Snyder, 1991)Integrated Theory (Wilson and Musick, 1997)Volunteer Process Model (Omoto and Snyder, 2002)Theory of Planned Behavior (Azjen, 1991)

11. Theoretical Framework Volunteer Functional Approach (Clary et al., 1998) Satisfaction (Penner & Finkelstein, 1998 ) Organizational Commitment (Mowday, Steers and Porter, 1979) Intention to Leave (Weisberg, 1984)

12. Volunteer Characteristics Organizational Characteristics 3 Motives for Volunteering H1 Organizational Commitment H2 Satisfaction H4 H3 Intention to Leave Volunteering/ Volunteer Retention Hypothesized Model

13. CHAPTER III: RESEARCH METHODS • Research Design • Population and Sampling • Instrumentation • Procedures: Ethical Considerations and Data Collection Methods • Methods of Data Analysis

14. ResearchDesign • Quantitative, non-experimental • Correlational (explanatory) • Comparative (exploratory) • Survey of accessible population

15. Population and Sampling Plan a Estimated seasonal volunteers b Data not available or unknown Target Population =Accessible Population

16. Sample Size • Based on data analysis (internal validity) - Hierarchical stepwise: 50+8(22) = 226 - Exploratory factor analysis = 100-600 • Based on size of population (external validity) 217 with 500 recommended Minimal sample size needed = 226

17. Setting Animal Services Extension Services Fire Library Parks Veteran’s Services

18. Instrumentation 1: Volunteer Characteristics 2: Organizational Characteristics 3: Motives for Volunteering 4: Satisfaction 5: Organizational Commitment 6: Intention to Leave 64 Total items in survey

19. Procedures: Ethical Considerations and Data Collection Methods • Permission to use scales obtained • Permission to survey Marion County volunteers obtained • Defended proposal • IRB approval • 4 weeks of data collection • IRB termination report • Store data securely – 5 years

20. Methods of Data Analysis Using SPSS 15.0 Reliability and Validity of scales RQ 1: Descriptive Research Design Descriptive Statistics RQ 2 and RQ 3: Exploratory Research Design  Comparative Statistics Independent t tests, Chi- Square and ANOVA with post hoc comparisons using Tukey’s test H1, H2, and H3 Explanatory (Correlation) Research Design  Pearson r and Stepwise (forward) Multiple Regression Analysis H4 Explanatory (Correlation) Research Design  Eta correlation, Pearson r and Stepwise (forward) Multiple Regression Analysis

21. CHAPTER IV: Results • Data Producing Sample • Reliability and Validity of Measurement Scales • Research Questions • Research Hypotheses

22. Data Producing Sample + Sample is over represented. – Sample is under represented.

23. Psychometrics of VFI

24. Psychometrics of OCQ, Satisfaction and Intention to Leave

25. RQ 1 Volunteer Characteristics • 157 female, 72 male • Age: Mean = 65 Range 19-94 • Marital Status: Married 167 • 97.8% White • 98.7% Not Hispanic or Latino • 75.5% Not working • Experience as volunteer: Average 58 months • Average frequency: 3.7 days/month • 69.4% One or more years of college education

26. RQ 1 Governmental Organizational Characteristics • Department • Library – 47.6% • Type of Service • Citizen Contact/Community Service – 72.1% • Role of Volunteer • Support staff providing public service – 46.7%

27. RQ 1 Motives for volunteering • Lowest average item score - VFI 1 Career: Foot in the door - 1.75 • Highest average score - VFI 19 Values: Important to help others - 5.87 Organizational commitment (Range of 1-7) Mean scores range 5.61 – 6.48 Satisfaction (Range of 1-5) Mean scores range 4.15 – 4.45 Intention to leave (Range of 1-5) Mean scores range 1.57 – 1.58

28. RQ 2 Gender and Ethnicity Differences • Males scored higher than females on 28-Item Revised VFI and each subscale • Significantly higher: • 28-Item Revised VFI (t= 2.98, p=.003) • Understanding (t= 2.17, p=.031) • Career (t= 3.62, p=.000) • Social (t= 2.35, p=.020) • Trend: • Valuest= 1.90, p=.058) Age Statistically significant differences Career subscale (F=13.00, p = .000)

29. RQ 2 Statistically significant differences: MaritalStatus • Career subscale (F=11.63, p = .000) Race • VFI Total (F=3.22, p = .042) • Career subscale (F=13.00, p = .000) Employment Status • VFI Total (F=4.47, p = .012) Experience • No statistically significant differences

30. RQ 2 Statistically significant differences: Frequency of volunteering • Values subscale (F=3.03, p = .018) Education • VFI Total (F=3.01, p = .031) • Protective and Enhancement subscale (F=3.26, p = .022) • Social subscale (F=7.15, p = .000) Occupation VFI Total (F=3.22, p = .005) Protective and Enhancement subscale (F=4.24, p = .000) ISP VFI Total (F=7.62, p = .000) Protective and Enhancement subscale (F=10.26, p = .000) Career subscale (F= 3.06, p = .026)

31. RQ 2 Governmental Organizational Characteristics – Chi-Square analysis • Statistically significant differences between gender and: • Departments (p = .000) • Service type (p = .000) • Volunteer role (p = .000) • Department • More females in Library (62%) • More males in Fire (36.6%) • Service type – • More females Citizen contact (83.5%) • Volunteer role – • More females Support staff/Direct public contact (51.3%)

32. RQ 3 • Departments • VFI Total - Fire Department >Extension Services and Library • Understanding subscale – Extension Services > Library • Career subscale – Fire >Extension Services, Library, and Small Departments • Social subscale – Small Departments > Extension Services • Service Type • Career subscale - Emergency Services > Animal contact and Nature/outdoor services • Volunteer Role • 28 Item VFI Total - Emergency Services > Support staff/direct public contact and information • Protective and Enhancement subscale – Clerical > Support staff/direct public contact

33. H1

34. H2

35. H3

36. H4

37. CHAPTER V: Discussion • Practical Implications • Conclusions • Limitations • Recommendations for Future Study

38. Practical Implications • Low intention to leave indicative of their continued commitment and appropriate matching of personal interests to volunteering. • High level of volunteer satisfaction and organizational commitment = continued commitment. • Gender specific outreach to encourage volunteer participation in non stereotype roles. • Government agency volunteering provides opportunity for visibility and status could be factor for retention. • Target younger volunteers for future pool of volunteers.

39. Conclusions • Hypotheses 1, 2 and 3 - supported. • Significant explanatory variables: • Motives for volunteering • (VFI Understanding and Values)- organizational commitment. • Motives for volunteering • (VFI Understanding, Values, and Protective and Enhancement) - satisfaction. • Motives for volunteering • (VFI Social) - intention to leave • Hypothesis 4 - partially supported. • Characteristics of volunteers (age), motives for volunteering (VFI Social), and organizational commitment • intention to leave • Theoretical framework - partially confirmed

40. Conclusions • Revised 28-Item Volunteer Functions Inventory Scale - multi-dimensional, reliable, and valid scale. Internal consistency reliability was estimated with good results. • 8-Item OCQ scale – unidimensional, reliable, and valid scale with good factor loadings. • 2-Item Satisfaction scale - unidimensional scale with acceptable factor loadings and satisfactory reliability. • 2-Item Intention to Leave scale - unidimensional, reliable, and valid scale. Internal consistency reliability was estimated with satisfactory results.

41. Conclusions • 28-Item Volunteer Functions Inventory Revised Total scale had the highest internal consistency reliability of 4 scales in study. • 30-item (6 factor)Volunteer Functions Inventory (VFI) utilized in diverse samples; Revised 28-item VFI loaded into a five-factor structure. • High ratings for motives for volunteering, (VFI Understanding and Protective and Enhancement) - indicative of perceived benefits -may be related to their organizational commitment and intention to leave.

42. Limitations • Non-experimental designs - lower internal validity . • Sample self-selected. • The data-producing sample could be generalized across departments in Marion County government; however, the findings could not be generalized to all age groups. • Homogeneity limits generalizability. • Marion County, Florida, government volunteers. • Only volunteers present during data collection. • No seasonal volunteers included.

43. Recommendations for Future Study • Government volunteers in other jurisdictions. • Broader scale survey of government volunteers from different counties and states to allow generalizability of findings to larger population. • Comparative study of other community volunteers in of Marion County. • Prospective longitudinal study to compare changes in motivation, satisfaction, organizational commitment and intention to leave

44. Recommendations for Future Study • Modify OCQ so that questions are positively phrased. • Further testing of the VFI utilizing EFA to examine the internal reliability of the VFI. • Further psychometric evaluation of all scales used in the study to examine the dimensionality of the scales. • Combine interviews with surveys to allow open-ended responses from the participants.

45. Questions or Comments?Thank You!