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Predicting Volunteer Commitment in Environmental Stewardship Programmes

Author

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  • Robert Ryan
  • Rachel Kaplan
  • Robert Grese

Abstract

The natural environment benefits greatly from the work of volunteers in environmental stewardship programmes. However, little is known about volunteers' motivations for continued participation in these programmes. This study looked at the relationship between volunteer commitment and motivation, as well as the effect that volunteering has on participants' behaviour and attitudes toward the environment. The study participants were 148 long-term volunteers from three environmental stewardship programmes in Michigan. The results of the study revealed that helping the environment and learning were important initial motivations. Other motivations, including social factors and project organization, were found to be significant predictors of volunteer commitment. Volunteers also indicated many significant changes in their environmental outlook and actions during their involvement in stewardship activities. The results of the study suggest that stewardship programmes that consider volunteers' changing motivations at different stages of their participation can effectively nurture personal growth while fostering a powerful constituency for the environment among their volunteers.

Suggested Citation

  • Robert Ryan & Rachel Kaplan & Robert Grese, 2001. "Predicting Volunteer Commitment in Environmental Stewardship Programmes," Journal of Environmental Planning and Management, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 44(5), pages 629-648.
    • Handle: RePEc:taf:jenpmg:v:44:y:2001:i:5:p:629-648
    DOI: 10.1080/09640560120079948
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Jolejole, Christina B. & Swinton, Scott M. & Robertson, G. Philip & Syswerda, Sara P., 2009. "Profitability and Environmental Stewardship for Row Crop Production: Are There Trade-offs?," 2009 Conference, August 16-22, 2009, Beijing, China 50920, International Association of Agricultural Economists.
    2. Tomazos, Kostas & Butler, Richard, 2012. "Volunteer tourists in the field: A question of balance?," Tourism Management, Elsevier, vol. 33(1), pages 177-187.
    3. Sari F. Madsen & Flemming Ekelund & Niels Strange & Jesper Sølver Schou, 2021. "Motivations of Volunteers in Danish Grazing Organizations," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(15), pages 1-14, July.
    4. Brites, Alice Dantas & Morsello, Carla, 2018. "Effects of Economic Dependence and Cooperative Behavior Over Participation in Monitoring the Impacts of Natural Resource Trade," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 147(C), pages 365-372.
    5. Yeni Rahmawati & Norhasni Zainal Abiddin & Ihsan Ro¡'is, 2015. "Relationship Between Motivation and Organizational Commitment among Scout Volunteers in East Kalimantan," Journal of Social Science Studies, Macrothink Institute, vol. 2(1), pages 51-63, January.
    6. Andersson, Erik & Tengö, Maria & McPhearson, Timon & Kremer, Peleg, 2015. "Cultural ecosystem services as a gateway for improving urban sustainability," Ecosystem Services, Elsevier, vol. 12(C), pages 165-168.
    7. Lo, Ada S. & Lee, Candy Y.S., 2011. "Motivations and perceived value of volunteer tourists from Hong Kong," Tourism Management, Elsevier, vol. 32(2), pages 326-334.
    8. Rixt Bijker & Eveline van Leeuwen & Paul (P.R.) Koster, 2019. "To join or not to join? The impact of social interactions on local participation decisions," Tinbergen Institute Discussion Papers 19-003/VIII, Tinbergen Institute.
    9. Sari F. Madsen & Niels Strange & Jesper S. Schou, 2019. "Motivations of volunteers in Danish grazing organisations," IFRO Working Paper 2019/09, University of Copenhagen, Department of Food and Resource Economics.
    10. Bhattarai, Kiran Kumari & Pant, Laxmi Prasad & FitzGibbon, John, 2020. "Contested governance of drinking water provisioning services in Nepal’s transboundary river basins," Ecosystem Services, Elsevier, vol. 45(C).
    11. Erin Miller Hamilton & Apoorva Rane, 2022. "Speaking Their Language: Does Environmental Signage Align to Personal Dimensions of Environmentally Responsible Behavior in Undergraduate Residence Halls?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(4), pages 1-23, February.
    12. Kyle M. Woosnam & Marianna Strzelecka & Gwendelyn S. Nisbett & Samuel J. Keith, 2019. "Examining Millennials’ Global Citizenship Attitudes and Behavioral Intentions to Engage in Environmental Volunteering," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(8), pages 1-18, April.
    13. Chen Ding & Michael A. Schuett, 2020. "Predicting the Commitment of Volunteers’ Environmental Stewardship: Does Generativity Play a Role?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(17), pages 1-18, August.
    14. Heesup Han & Antonio Ariza-Montes & Pilar Tirado-Valencia & Soyeun Lee, 2020. "Volunteering Attitude, Mental Well-Being, and Loyalty for the Non-Profit Religious Organization of Volunteer Tourism," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(11), pages 1-16, June.
    15. Willems, Jurgen & Walk, Marlene, 2013. "Assigning volunteer tasks: The relation between task preferences and functional motives of youth volunteers," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 35(6), pages 1030-1040.
    16. A.N. Normah & Z.M. Lukman, 2020. "Volunteerism Declined Among University Students: Why Do They Not Volunteer?," International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science, International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science (IJRISS), vol. 4(10), pages 276-280, October.

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