Volunteer administrators: Problems and training needs
Description
The study conducted by a mailed questionnaire assessed the training needs and surveyed the problems faced by 50 volunteer administrators in Arkansas, Oklahoma, Louisiana and Texas. The section on training needs was a replication of the 1987 Appel study and data on both studies were compared The study developed two scales. The Competency scale had twelve subscales: Advertising and promotion, Program planning, Volunteer training, Rewarding and recognizing, Group or process, Site planning and maintenance, Motivation, Recruiting and screening, Supervision, Money management, Interpersonal skill and Legal issues. The Problem scale had six subscales: Colleague, Job, Staff, Funding and resources, Training for volunteer administrators and Profession. Both scales reported a alpha reliability of.08 or larger The data revealed substantial differences in training needs of volunteer administrators based on age (p $<$.00) and tenure (p $<$.03). These findings differ from the Appel study. Entire sample reported a training need in the area of legal issues. The perceived lack of professionalism for the field of volunteer administration was most frequently experienced problem. Volunteer administrators who supervised less than 450 volunteers perceived problems to a greater degree than those who supervised more than 450 volunteers. Volunteer administrators who had less than 20% volunteer turnover perceived the need for training more than those who had greater than 20% of volunteer turnover