The Role of Recruitment Expectations and Organisational Trust in Volunteer Organisations

Type of content
Theses / Dissertations
Publisher's DOI/URI
Thesis discipline
Psychology
Degree name
Master of Science
Publisher
University of Canterbury. Psychology
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Language
Date
2013
Authors
Riley, Jordyn Amelia
Abstract

Volunteer organisations provide significant value to society. However, limited research exists on ways through which volunteer organisations can manage the behaviour and attitudes of their volunteers. The main purpose of this study was to contribute to literature in this area by assessing the applicability of setting appropriate recruitment expectations and fostering organisational trust in the volunteer context. This was done by examining the influence of the relationship between pre-entry recruitment expectations and post-entry experiences of volunteers on levels of satisfaction, commitment, co-operative behaviour and turnover intentions. The influence of organisational trust on these variables was also assessed. Volunteers from a national non-profit organisation were given a survey of their expectations shortly after joining (and prior to undertaking any voluntary work), and then completed another set of measures two months later after participation in voluntary training and activities. Sampling resulted in 22 matched surveys between phase one and phase two. Results partially suggest that expectations and organisational trust are associated with volunteer satisfaction levels, and provide evidence indicating that further research in this area using a larger sample may reveal significant associations. Overall, the present study suggests that volunteer organisations can benefit from the appropriate management of recruitment processes and organisational trust, and provides a foundation for further research on this topic.

Description
Citation
Keywords
volunteers, organisational trust, recruitment expectations
Ngā upoko tukutuku/Māori subject headings
ANZSRC fields of research
Rights
Copyright Jordyn Amelia Riley