Research

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Giving and Volunteering in the United States, 2001
Independent Sector
Presents the key findings from a national survey of more that 4,000 adults on their giving and volunteering habits. Report and executive summary are available to Independent Sector members only.
http://www.independentsector.org/programs/research/gv01main.html

Recruiting, Retaining and Rewarding Volunteers: What Volunteers Have to Say
S. Philips, B. Little and L. Goodine, The Canadian Centre for Philanthropy, 2002
Summarizes interviews with 111 volunteers in social service organizations and community associations in Canada. Volunteers were asked about their organizations' recruitment, retention, and training practices. Cites respondents' opinions on how policy makers might support volunteerism.
Download/view: PDF (630KB)

Volunteering and Adult Learning
S. Kerka, ERIC Digest No. 202, 1998
Describes the connections between the fields of volunteer management and adult education. Examines the professionalization of volunteer management, the types of learning that occur through volunteering, and the culture of volunteer organizations.
Download/view: PDF (29KB) | HTML

Volunteers in Adult Literacy
J. Sandlin and R. St. Clair, in J. Comings, B. Garner, and C. Smith (Eds.), Annual Review of Adult Learning and Literacy, Volume 5, 2005
This chapter reviews the history of volunteerism and describes adult education volunteers' roles, training, practices, motivation, commitment, and challenges. Also makes recommendations for future policy, practice, and research.
http://www.ncsall.net/?id=780