Volunteer motivation and attendance decisions: Competitive theory testing in multiple samples from a homeless shelter.

Abstract

The process underlying participation in episodic volunteer work is conceptualized as a form of attendance motivation. A decision-making theory of attendance motivation is expanded for the voluntarism context, then competitively tested against nested theories: the theory of planned behavior (I. Ajzen, 1991), the theory of reasoned action (M. Fishbein, 1980), and a benchmark theory emphasizing the subjective expected utility of anticipated rewards. Tests are conducted in a field study (n = 53) predicting the motivation and attendance of male volunteers scheduled to work roughly 1 night per month at a homeless shelter. One panel (n = 53) and 2 cross-sectional (« = 51;« = 53) replications of the field study are also described. Results are consistent across time and samples in their support of the expanded theory primarily because it includes a moral obligation component. Roughly 50% of American adults volunteer their time to nonprofit organizations, with increasing amounts of that time spent on social service activities