Relationship between benefit finding and volunteer motivation among nursing students: The mediating role of perceived social support.

BACKGROUND: Volunteer motivation is essential to advancing community service, education, and career development of nursing students. However, few studies have been conducted on nursing students' volunteer motivation. OBJECTIVES: To investigate the relationship between social support benefit finding and volunteer motivation among nursing students and the role of social support in these relationships. METHOD: This study adopted a descriptive cross-sectional design. A total of 2166 nursing students were recruited from eighteen medical schools in Henan Province, China. Participants completed a sociodemographic questionnaire, the Social Support Scale, the Benefit Finding Scale, and the Volunteer Motivation Scale online between March and May 2022. Correlation and mediation analyses were used to explore the mediating role of social support in the relationships among social support, benefit finding, and volunteer motivation. RESULTS: A total of 2166 valid questionnaires were collected in this study. Benefit finding positively affected volunteer motivation (ß = 0.422, p < 0.01), and perceived social support positively affected volunteer motivation (ß = 0.407, p < 0.01). Perceived social support played a mediating role between benefit finding and volunteer motivation (ß = 0.112, 95 % confidence interval 0.076, 0.148). CONCLUSIONS: The study provides evidence on the mechanisms of action between benefit finding and volunteer motivation among nursing students. Professionals in schools and voluntary organizations should prioritize guiding nursing students to explore the motivations behind volunteering while also fostering a supportive environment for student volunteers in nursing.

Subtypes of nursing students' volunteer motivation in COVID-19: a latent profile analysis.

BACKGROUND: One factor that influences nursing students' decision to engage in volunteer activities is volunteer motivation. It is important to understand the motivations of nursing students to volunteer. However, the majority of current studies have concentrated on the present level of nursing students' motivation to volunteer. OBJECTIVES: To identify subgroups of nursing students' volunteer motivation and its influential factors. METHODS: From January to February 2022, a cross-sectional online study was conducted, and 2569 nursing students from 10 provinces in China were recruited. Participants completed the General Information Questionnaire, Volunteer Functional Inventory (VFI), Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) and Perceived Social Support Scale (PSSS). We explore the categories and characteristics of volunteer motivation using latent profile analysis. Then, we determined factors that affect undergraduate nursing students' volunteer motivation using multinomial logistic regression. RESULTS: The volunteer motivation score of the nursing students was 77.65 (15.22). The study found that volunteer motivation could be divided into three categories: low-low protective volunteer motivation group (9.3%), general-high career values volunteer motivation group (37.5%), and high volunteer motivation group (53.2%). Perceived social support scale score, perceived stress scale score, gender, and grade significantly influenced the volunteer motivation of nursing students in different categories (both P < 0.05). Women were more likely to have higher motivation to volunteer than men, and fourth-year nursing students were more likely to be in general-high career values volunteer motivation group. CONCLUSIONS: The study highlights the significant heterogeneity in volunteer motivation among nursing students. Higher volunteer motivation was associated with higher perceived social support and lower perceived stress. In addition, gender and academic year were significant influencing factors. Nursing educators should develop targeted volunteer management plans based on the typological characteristics of the population to motivate nursing students to volunteer and promote the development of individual physical and mental health and social well-being. TRIAL REGISTRATION: The survey was approved by the Biomedical Ethics Committee of the Department of Medicine, Xi'an Jiaotong University (No. 2022-0006).

Outcome of capacity building in mental health for well-being volunteers.

Introduction: Volunteering is any activity in which time is given to assist another individual, group, or organization. It assists people who want to get involved in philanthropic programs that help volunteers develop awareness and lead healthier personal and social lives. Several volunteers have received specialized training in the fields in which they volunteer, such as health, mental health, education, or emergency rescue. Volunteers are rendering intervention in different areas in mental health. They are providing psychosocial support to the individuals, groups, community, promoting mental health through conducting various mental health awareness programs in the community. There is a growing concern about mental health in India due to the inaccessibility of services. The National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences (NIMHANS) being a premier institute for mental health, is devising innovative approaches to mental health care to reach the unreachable. One such initiative was to build the capacity of volunteers in the community who are interested in working for the cause of mental health. Methods: The objective of this study was to evaluate the outcome of the well-being volunteer program. This study used a descriptive cross-sectional research design, wherein all the 136 trained well-being volunteers (WBVs) were included as the study sample. The data was collected from the volunteers who attended the WBV program, which was initiated by NIMHANS Centre for Well-being (NCWB) and the Department of Psychiatric Social Work NIMHANS. A questionnaire on the outcome of the Well Being Volunteers program was developed for the study, and the Volunteer Motivation Inventory scale was used to collect the data from the WBVs. SPSS software was used to analyze the data. Ethical clearance was sought from the Institute Ethics Committee of NIMHANS. Results: The WBV program enhanced volunteers' knowledge of mental health and benefited the volunteers in their personal and social life. They were also able to implement a satisfactory level of mental health-related volunteer activities in the community. Conclusion: Results of present study and the available literature suggest that engaging in voluntary services improves mental health knowledge. WBV program has provided opportunity to Volunteers to participate in mental health delivery system at different levels.

Relationship between college students’ social support and volunteer motivation in the post-epidemic era / 西安交通大学学报(医学版)

【Objective】 To investigate the intrinsic relationship of social support and psychological capital with college students’ volunteer motivation in the post-epidemic era so as to provide theoretical basis for formulating policies and measures to increase college students’ participation in volunteer activities. 【Methods】 In March 2022, 1 120 college students from 15 universities in Henan Province were selected by convenient sampling method. Their general information, social support, psychological capital, and volunteer motivation were investigated, and univariate analysis, correlation analysis and intermediary effect analysis were performed. 【Results】 The differences of scores in six dimensions of volunteer motivation (i.e., values, understanding, enhancement, career, social interaction, and self-protection) were statistically significant (F=124.90, P<0.001). There were significant differences in social support level of college students of different genders (t=-2.40, P<0.05), and the difference in volunteer motivation level among different grades of college students was statistically significant (F=6.72, P<0.001). Social support, psychological capital, and volunteer motivation were positively correlated with one another (r=0.41, r=0.35, r=0.50, P<0.001). Part of the intermediary effect of psychological capital between social support and volunteer motivation was significant (intermediary effect value=0.49, 95% CI: 0.39-0.59). 【Conclusion】 Colleges and universities can take corresponding measures to improve college students’ volunteer motivation level by improving social support and psychological capital level.

Mediating role of organization climate between volunteer service motivation and work engagement in volunteers / 西安交通大学学报(医学版)

【Objective】 To explore the mediating effect of different organizational climate on volunteer service motivation and work engagement among volunteers during the COVID-19 epidemic. 【Methods】 The Volunteer Service Motivation Scale, Organizational Climate Scale, and Work Input Scale were used to investigate relevant contents among volunteers from Shaanxi, Hubei and Henan provinces who participated in prevention and control of the COVID-19 epidemic by convenient sampling method. Pearson correlation analysis was applied to explore the correlation among volunteer service motivation, organizational climate and work engagement. The Bootstrap method was used to analyze the mediating role of organizational climate between volunteer service motivation and work engagement. 【Results】 The scores of volunteer service motivation, organizational climate, and work engagement of the 834 volunteers were 72.45±13.66, 24.03±4.65, and 51.59±10.04, respectively. Volunteer service motivation was positively correlated with work engagement (r=0.556, P<0.001) and organizational climate (r=0.604, P<0.001). Organizational climate was positively correlated with work engagement (r=0.632, P<0.001). Organizational climate played a mediating role between volunteer service motivation and work engagement (effect value=0.278, accounting for 47.0% of the total effect). 【Conclusion】 Volunteer service motivation indirectly affects work engagement through organizational climate, indicating that volunteer team managers can improve their work engagement level by improving the organizational climate.

The Association of Volunteer Motivation and Thriving at Work of College Students During COVID-19: Job Burnout and Psychological Capital as Mediators.

Thriving at work is a type of mental state in which an individual feels vigorous and learning at the same time in the job. Previous studies have shown that individual internal motivation is relevant to thriving at work and volunteer behaviors, but the role of motivation is still to be further explored. Based self-determination theory, this study focuses on the mediating effects of job burnout and psychological capital on the relationship between volunteer motivation and thriving at work. Three hundred forty-nine college student volunteers who participated in psychological assistance volunteer activities during the COVID-19 pandemic were investigated using the Volunteer Function Motivation Inventory, Maslach Burnout Inventory, PsyCap Questionnaire, and Thriving at work scale. The results indicated that job burnout and psychological capital mediate the relationship between volunteer motivation and thriving at work. The results not only offer important theoretical insights of Volunteer Motivation and Thriving at Work, but also generate practical implications regarding how to use motivating Volunteer behavior and enhanced wellbeing at work.

Knowledge Mapping of Volunteer Motivation: A Bibliometric Analysis and Cross-Cultural Comparative Study.

Volunteers play an indispensable role in several major events and activities. The purpose of this study is to review studies on volunteer motivation from 2000 to 2021 and to discover the development trends in this field. The Web of Science Core Collection is the main literature data resource, from which 162 papers on volunteer motivation published in the SSCI were selected. Using two visualization analysis tools, CiteSpace and VOSviewer, this study conducts bibliometric analysis and systematic review from multiple dimensions, identifying the authors, countries, institutions, and journals with high productivity in this field. Additionally, we explored highly cited papers, authors, and journals in this field. This study aims to find the research hotspots and theoretical basis through co-occurrence analysis and cluster analysis of keywords and explore the evolution through the time zone map drawn with CiteSpace. Moreover, we focus on the influence of Chinese and Western cultures (represented by China and the United States) on volunteer motivation. It was found that Chinese volunteers were more affected by collectivism, whereas American volunteers were more affected by individualism. The conclusion of this study constructs a clear framework for research on volunteer motivation, which provides researchers with a deeper and thorough understanding of the connotation of volunteer motivation, providing guidance and support for future research in this field.

How and why beekeepers participate in the INSIGNIA citizen science honey bee environmental monitoring project.

In the "contributory" citizen science project INSIGNIA, beekeepers carried out non-invasive sampling of their own honey bee colonies for an environmental investigation of pesticide residues and pollen plant origin. We surveyed several traits and attitudes of 69 of the volunteering beekeepers from ten countries. We found that their motivation was similar to that found in previous studies of environmental volunteer motivation, with helping the environment and contributing to scientific knowledge being strong motivators. Our results suggest that receiving laboratory analysis results of the samples from their colonies is the most meaningful way of appreciation for beekeepers, but is not their primary reason for participation. A citizen scientist beekeeper in this study spent on average 10.4 working hours on the project during a sampling season. Our study indicates that most of our volunteers would participate in similar future investigations, or would recommend participation to other beekeepers, underlining the potential of beekeepers as citizen scientists in honey bee research.

Motivation of Volunteers to Work in Palliative Care Setting: A Qualitative Study.

BACKGROUND: Volunteers are an integral part of the palliative care services in the Tata Memorial Hospital, Mumbai, Maharashtra, India. These volunteers are an important resource for the department. Thus, it is necessary for the department to determine what motivates these volunteers to continue to work in the setting, acknowledge them and direct efforts toward retaining them and giving them opportunities to serve to the best of their desire and abilities. AIMS: The current study aimed at understanding the motivation of volunteers to work in palliative care, to identify the challenges they face and also the effect of their work on their self and relationships. METHODOLOGY: In-depth interviews were conducted using semistructured interview guide to study above mentioned aspects. Themes were identified and coding was used to analyze the data. RESULTS: The results suggested that the basic motivation for all the volunteers to work in a palliative care setting is an inherent urge, a feeling of need to give back to the society by serving the sick and the suffering. Other motivating factors identified were team spirit, comfort shared, warm and respectful treatment by the team, satisfying nature of work, experience of cancer in the family, and aligned values and beliefs. Some intrinsic rewards mentioned by volunteers were joy of giving, personal growth, enriching experiences, and meaningful nature of work. CONCLUSION: The study attempted to improve opportunities of working for these volunteers. Although limited in scope, it offers insight for future research in the area of volunteerism in palliative care setup.

The role of automated feedback in training and retaining biological recorders for citizen science.

The rapid rise of citizen science, with lay people forming often extensive biodiversity sensor networks, is seen as a solution to the mismatch between data demand and supply while simultaneously engaging citizens with environmental topics. However, citizen science recording schemes require careful consideration of how to motivate, train, and retain volunteers. We evaluated a novel computing science framework that allowed for the automated generation of feedback to citizen scientists using natural language generation (NLG) technology. We worked with a photo-based citizen science program in which users also volunteer species identification aided by an online key. Feedback is provided after photo (and identification) submission and is aimed to improve volunteer species identification skills and to enhance volunteer experience and retention. To assess the utility of NLG feedback, we conducted two experiments with novices to assess short-term (single session) and longer-term (5 sessions in 2 months) learning, respectively. Participants identified a specimen in a series of photos. One group received only the correct answer after each identification, and the other group received the correct answer and NLG feedback explaining reasons for misidentification and highlighting key features that facilitate correct identification. We then developed an identification training tool with NLG feedback as part of the citizen science program BeeWatch and analyzed learning by users. Finally, we implemented NLG feedback in the live program and evaluated this by randomly allocating all BeeWatch users to treatment groups that received different types of feedback upon identification submission. After 6 months separate surveys were sent out to assess whether views on the citizen science program and its feedback differed among the groups. Identification accuracy and retention of novices were higher for those who received automated feedback than for those who received only confirmation of the correct identification without explanation. The value of NLG feedback in the live program, captured through questionnaires and evaluation of the online photo-based training tool, likewise showed that the automated generation of informative feedback fostered learning and volunteer engagement and thus paves the way for productive and long-lived citizen science projects.