Abstract
Purpose: Training is an integral part of volunteer management, which may be particularly important to older volunteers preparing them with the necessary skills for service provision. However, little was known concerning the outcome differences between trained and untrained older volunteers. This study addressed this question by conducting a longitudinal design research to investigate the outcome differences between trained and untrained older volunteers in skill competency and volunteer motivation over time.
Methods: This study adopted a longitudinal cluster-randomized research design, randomly assigning 156 older volunteers from 10 community care centers to either training or control group (n training = 80, n control = 76). The training group received three hours per week of lectures for 4 weeks, followed by a two-month internship. The control group continued to serve without training. The inclusion criteria involved older adults (1) aged ≥ 65, (2) capable of reading and writing Chinese, and (3) serving in community care centers for at least one month. An Older Volunteers’ Competency Scale (OVCS) and the Chinese version of the Volunteer Functions Inventory (VFI) were assessed at baseline, and at one and three months of the study period. The generalized estimating equations (GEE) was used to analyze the data.
Results: The training group had significantly more improvement in skill competency, compared to the control group from baseline to the first month (ß = -77.58, Wald χ2 = 597.81, p < .001). The observed group difference in skill competency improvement persisted to the end of the research period (ß = -138.86, Wald χ2 = 984.37, p < .001). Significant time and group interaction was observed in volunteer motivation in the third month of the study period (ß = 5.28, Wald χ2 = 19.15, p < .001), suggesting significant group differences in motivation improvement. Specifically, the training group demonstrated a steady trend of improvement in motivation (p < .001) while the control group significantly deteriorated at time three (p < .05).
Conclusion: In this study, we found training might play an integral part in older volunteerism. Specifically, it was discovered that training not only improved older adults’ work competency, but also enhanced their motivation to continue serving. Without training, older adults deteriorated volunteering motivation over time. The finding highlighted the importance of training for older volunteers.
Notes
References:
Filges, T., Siren, A., Fridberg, T., & Nielsen B. C. V. (2020). Voluntary work for the physical and mental health of older volunteers: A systematic review. Campbell Systematic Reviews, 16(4), e1124. https://doi.org/10.1002/cl2.1124
Hung, Y. C., Chen, K. C., Chen, I. F., & Liu, L. H. (2022). A study of the key sustainable factors of Taiwan’s community care centers. Sustainability, 14(3), 1413. https://doi.org/10.3390/su14031413
Kim, E. S., Whillans, A. V., Lee, M. T., Chen, Y., & Vander-Weele, T. J. (2020). Volunteering and subsequent health and well-being in older adults: An outcome-wide longitudinal approach. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 59(2), 176-186. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.amepre.2020.03.004
Le, G., & Aartsen, M. (2022). Understanding volunteering intensity in older volunteers. Ageing and Society, 1-19. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0144686X22001106
Liang, T. C., & Cai, Y. J. (2020). Study on participation motivation, working satisfaction and loyalty of local volunteers serving for rural community organization. Journal of National Formosa University, 35(1), 87-105. https://doi.org/10.6425/JNHUST.202003_35(1).0006
Ling, W. H. H., Lee, W. P. V., Chui, W. H., & Sin K. M. C. (2023). Older adults and volunteering: Mental wellness, motivation, and satisfaction. Activities, Adaptation, & Aging, 47(4), 482-500. https://doi.org/10.1080/01924788.2023.2182489
Sigma Membership
Lambda Beta at-Large
Type
Poster
Format Type
Text-based Document
Study Design/Type
Other
Research Approach
Other
Keywords:
Competence, Continuing Education, Teaching and Learning Strategies, Volunteers, Volunteer Management
Recommended Citation
Chen, Kuei-Min and Chen, Szu-Yu, "Training and Older Volunteerism: From the Perspectives of Skill Competency and Motivation" (2025). International Nursing Research Congress (INRC). 19.
https://www.sigmarepository.org/inrc/2025/posters_2025/19
Conference Name
36th International Nursing Research Congress
Conference Host
Sigma Theta Tau International
Conference Location
Seattle, Washington, USA
Conference Year
2025
Rights Holder
All rights reserved by the author(s) and/or publisher(s) listed in this item record unless relinquished in whole or part by a rights notation or a Creative Commons License present in this item record.
Review Type
Abstract Review Only: Reviewed by Event Host
Acquisition
Proxy-submission
Training and Older Volunteerism: From the Perspectives of Skill Competency and Motivation
Seattle, Washington, USA
Purpose: Training is an integral part of volunteer management, which may be particularly important to older volunteers preparing them with the necessary skills for service provision. However, little was known concerning the outcome differences between trained and untrained older volunteers. This study addressed this question by conducting a longitudinal design research to investigate the outcome differences between trained and untrained older volunteers in skill competency and volunteer motivation over time.
Methods: This study adopted a longitudinal cluster-randomized research design, randomly assigning 156 older volunteers from 10 community care centers to either training or control group (n training = 80, n control = 76). The training group received three hours per week of lectures for 4 weeks, followed by a two-month internship. The control group continued to serve without training. The inclusion criteria involved older adults (1) aged ≥ 65, (2) capable of reading and writing Chinese, and (3) serving in community care centers for at least one month. An Older Volunteers’ Competency Scale (OVCS) and the Chinese version of the Volunteer Functions Inventory (VFI) were assessed at baseline, and at one and three months of the study period. The generalized estimating equations (GEE) was used to analyze the data.
Results: The training group had significantly more improvement in skill competency, compared to the control group from baseline to the first month (ß = -77.58, Wald χ2 = 597.81, p < .001). The observed group difference in skill competency improvement persisted to the end of the research period (ß = -138.86, Wald χ2 = 984.37, p < .001). Significant time and group interaction was observed in volunteer motivation in the third month of the study period (ß = 5.28, Wald χ2 = 19.15, p < .001), suggesting significant group differences in motivation improvement. Specifically, the training group demonstrated a steady trend of improvement in motivation (p < .001) while the control group significantly deteriorated at time three (p < .05).
Conclusion: In this study, we found training might play an integral part in older volunteerism. Specifically, it was discovered that training not only improved older adults’ work competency, but also enhanced their motivation to continue serving. Without training, older adults deteriorated volunteering motivation over time. The finding highlighted the importance of training for older volunteers.
Description
This presentation introduces the results of a longitudinal cluster-randomized research that investigated the training outcomes of 156 older volunteers working in community care centers in Taiwan. Findings on older volunteers’ change in competencies and their volunteer motivation before and at two points in time after training (one and three months) will be further discussed.