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What Rewards Do Volunteers Want?
The rewards of volunteering are many, but which ones are most important to those who give their time freely? Corrigan and Martin provide some answers in a study published recently in the Journal of Volunteer Administration in an article titled, "Volunteerism: The Rewards and Costs Expected and Experienced."
The authors
studied 177 people from Ohio, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia who
were active volunteers. Participants in the survey were asked the
rewards and costs of volunteering. Here are the results of the survey.
|
Rank
of Reward
|
#
of Responses
|
%
of those making this response
|
Rank
and Cost
|
#
of Responses
|
%
of those making this response
|
| 1. Making Friends |
44
|
25%
|
None |
75
|
42%
|
| 2. Personal Satisfaction |
29
|
16%
|
Transportation Expenses |
35
|
20%
|
| 3. Helping Others |
26
|
26%
|
Time |
26
|
15%
|
| 4. Helped to Work with Others |
13
|
7%
|
Uniforms, Materials, etc. |
10
|
6%
|
| 5. Learned from Working with others |
12
|
7%
|
Minimal Costs |
9
|
5%
|
| 6. Feel Better about Self-Accomplishment |
10
|
|
Buying things for the "kids" |
7
|
4%
|
| 7. Sense of Being |
8
|
|
Being Away from family |
6
|
3%
|
| 8. Spiritual Growth |
7
|
|
Emotional stress |
6
|
3%
|
| 8. Recognition |
7
|
|
Limits other activities |
3
|
2%
|
| 9. Spending Time with Others |
7
|
|
Personal safety |
2
|
1%
|
| 9. Higher Self-Esteem |
6
|
||||
| 9. Personal Benefit - Free Service |
6
|
||||
| 9. Getting Love from Others |
6
|
||||
| 10. Confirmation of Career Goals |
4
|
Corrigan, Michael W. and Martin, Matthew M., (2004) "Volunteerism: The Rewards and Costs Expected and Experienced," Journal of Volunteer Administration, Volume 22, Number 1.
Interested in more information on volunteer management and supervision? Check out our online bookstore for One Minute Answer to Volunteer Management Questions, authored by Mary Kay Hood and Handling Problem Volunteers, by Sue Vineyard and Steve McCurley.
Tips on Web Writing
Want visits to your Web site? Write something once per month. Stale sites are not high on the Google or Yahoo list of places to visit. Refreshing your Web page with new stories on volunteers or those served by the organization is a sure-fire way to attract attention. It is called "optimizing" your site and is only one in a long list of things to do to generate more traffic.
-
Be concise. Web content should have 50% fewer words than a paper equivalent. Web readers are a forage and consume lot. They scan, scan, scan, until they find just the right spot. NO single chunk of text should be more than 75 words. Tighten your language. Get a good editor to get out the verbiage.
-
Objectivity is key. Avoid those grandiose statements. "The best, most, highest, overwhelming," is to be avoided. And never use jargon or "insider" terms.
-
Write for scan-ability. The reader will scan and you need to write accordingly. Use tables, charts, and graphs. Highlight key words, use short paragraphs, headings, and well-developed sentences.
Hierarchy of Communication: The Greatest Impact
Do you need to discuss a serious issue with a volunteer? Are you just trying to communicate a reminder about a meeting? What is the purpose of the communication? Depending on the importance of the message choose the appropriate type of communication from this hierarchy.
A
Meeting
The
best way to communicate for impact.
Phone Call
Voice Mail
| Interested in assessing volunteer and
staff relations in your program?
Looking for help from an expert? Get help with one of the Volunteer Program Evaluation Series. |
WSU ONLINE CERTIFICATE IN VOLUNTEER MANAGEMENT
Washington State University offers a Volunteer Management Certification Program through the Internet. Individuals around the world can earn a certificate in managing or coordinating volunteers, without leaving home. For more information, visit Volunteer Today's Portal site, Internet Resources. Look for the Washington State University listing. There is a hot link to their Web site.
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