Resilience Only Gets You So Far: Volunteer Incivility and Burnout

Although multiple factors have been found to induce burnout in volunteers, studies examining relationships among volunteer coworkers as a potential stressor are sorely lacking. Through the lens of conservation of resources (COR) theory, we investigated coworker (i.e., from both paid and unpaid coworkers) incivility as a predictor of burnout in a sample of volunteers. COR theory postulates that environmental stressors lead to burnout or other negative outcomes by depleting an individual’s resources. The present study also explored resilient coping as one factor that might help volunteers cope with the burnout emanating from incivility. Using regression, we found that incivility from paid and unpaid coworkers was positively associated with burnout. Resilient coping was tested and confirmed as a moderator of this relationship. Specifically, resilient coping was a useful buffer when the relationship between incivility and volunteer burnout was weaker, but was less effective at higher levels of incivility and burnout. Implications are discussed

So, who\u27s in charge?! : Managing Differences in Perceived Leaders Among Volunteers

Volunteers contribute greatly to the success of many organizations in the nation; this is especially true for nonprofit organizations that often find themselves stretched thin financially. Interestingly, although the importance of volunteers is generally acknowledged, there is little research investigating volunteers\u27 perceptions of their leaders. When it comes to volunteers, expectations for leadership may be different than for employees. To address this gap in the literature, we take a step back and seek to understand the underlying nature of leadership for volunteers in nonprofit organizations. Studies have often bypassed the usefulness of qualitative research in examining new phenomenon. In an effort to avoid simply drawing comparisons between volunteers and employees, we sought to understand how volunteer leadership looks to volunteers by analyzing the perceived strengths and weaknesses of their leaders through a series of open-ended questions. Given previous robust work on leadership in organizations, we anticipated that we would see different leadership styles emerge across different organizations. The responses to the open-ended questions were coded for emergent themes which were then analyzed. We found evidence that volunteers\u27 perceptions of their leaders primarily align with task- and relations-oriented leadership styles. This study provided insight to how volunteer leadership looks to volunteers in nonprofit organizations. The results of this study highlight the importance of gaining a deeper understanding into how leadership is perceived by volunteers in nonprofit organizations, as well as how this perception may differ from paid employees in other organizations

Moving Toward a Collective Impact Effort: The Volunteer Program Assessment

Volunteers are essential to the operation of many nonprofits, but some experience challenges in retaining their volunteer workforce. The Volunteer Program Assessment (VPA) seeks to address this issue by helping organizations to identify strengths, growth areas, and recommendations for improving volunteer experiences. To maximize the effectiveness of VPA’s mission, the organization is moving toward a collective impact (CI) approach. Although not developed as a CI effort, the program currently exemplifies many of its characteristics, which have been instrumental in expanding reach to more organizations. We examine VPA’s alignment with collective impact and outline how VPA will continue to improve efforts

Collective Impact Strategies: Introduction to the Special Issue

The societal and cultural issues facing humanity are far greater than any nonprofit, for-profit, university, or government agency to address adequately alone. Whether poverty, water shortages, socio-economic inequality, natural disasters with lasting effects, or any number of other challenges facing our communities, organizations must band together to secure the impact needed to truly create change. Increasingly, communities are turning to collective impact as an approach that brings together the collective resources of multiple institutions to address a community-identified problem or need. While a somewhat new approach, there is a growing body of evidence of supporting the effectiveness of using the collective impact approach to addressing wicked problems (Bridgeland et al., 2012; Christens & Inzeo, 2015; Kania, Hanleybrown, & Splansky Juster, 2014). As anchor institutions, Metropolitan Universities have a unique opportunity and responsibility to initiate and promote social change in a way that also advances their mission. Unlike other institutions for higher education, Metropolitan Universities are most suited for targeting social change because of the type of communities they serve and their location within large municipalities. Participating in collective impact is increasingly seen as one approach to this. This issue includes case studies and practical papers to prepare Metropolitan University administrators, faculty, and staff to initiate, facilitate, and strengthen collective impact initiatives in their communities

Volunteer Program Assessment at the University of Nebraska at Omaha: A Metropolitan University’s Collaboration with Rural and Spanish-Speaking Volunteers

The Volunteer Program Assessment at UNO (VPA-UNO), a faculty-led student group, partners with nonprofit and governmental agencies to provide free assessments and consultations to enhance volunteer engagement, organizational commitment and retention. Three recent initiatives are discussed representing an intentional effort of a metropolitan university to extend love of place to love of state through outreach efforts to rural volunteers and to promote inclusivity to Spanish-speaking volunteers by translating the VPA assessment into Spanish

Toxic epidermal necrolysis and Stevens-Johnson syndrome

Toxic epidermal necrolysis (TEN) and Stevens Johnson Syndrome (SJS) are severe adverse cutaneous drug reactions that predominantly involve the skin and mucous membranes. Both are rare, with TEN and SJS affecting approximately 1or 2/1,000,000 annually, and are considered medical emergencies as they are potentially fatal. They are characterized by mucocutaneous tenderness and typically hemorrhagic erosions, erythema and more or less severe epidermal detachment presenting as blisters and areas of denuded skin. Currently, TEN and SJS are considered to be two ends of a spectrum of severe epidermolytic adverse cutaneous drug reactions, differing only by their extent of skin detachment. Drugs are assumed or identified as the main cause of SJS/TEN in most cases, but Mycoplasma pneumoniae and Herpes simplex virus infections are well documented causes alongside rare cases in which the aetiology remains unknown. Several drugs are at "high" risk of inducing TEN/SJS including: Allopurinol, Trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole and other sulfonamide-antibiotics, aminopenicillins, cephalosporins, quinolones, carbamazepine, phenytoin, phenobarbital and NSAID's of the oxicam-type. Genetic susceptibility to SJS and TEN is likely as exemplified by the strong association observed in Han Chinese between a genetic marker, the human leukocyte antigen HLA-B*1502, and SJS induced by carbamazepine. Diagnosis relies mainly on clinical signs together with the histological analysis of a skin biopsy showing typical full-thickness epidermal necrolysis due to extensive keratinocyte apoptosis. Differential diagnosis includes linear IgA dermatosis and paraneoplastic pemphigus, pemphigus vulgaris and bullous pemphigoid, acute generalized exanthematous pustulosis (AGEP), disseminated fixed bullous drug eruption and staphyloccocal scalded skin syndrome (SSSS). Due to the high risk of mortality, management of patients with SJS/TEN requires rapid diagnosis, evaluation of the prognosis using SCORTEN, identification and interruption of the culprit drug, specialized supportive care ideally in an intensive care unit, and consideration of immunomodulating agents such as high-dose intravenous immunoglobulin therapy. SJS and TEN are severe and life-threatening. The average reported mortality rate of SJS is 1-5%, and of TEN is 25-35%; it can be even higher in elderly patients and those with a large surface area of epidermal detachment. More than 50% of patients surviving TEN suffer from long-term sequelae of the disease

Volunteer Attrition: Reducing Incivility among Coworkers

Although volunteers are vital to the success of many organizations, the rate of volunteerism in the US has been decreasing since 2002 (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2016). One reason volunteers leave organizations is due to feeling burnt out from volunteer work (Chen & Yu, 2014; Winefield, Xanthopolou, & Metzer, 2012). Although multiple factors have been found to induce burnout in volunteers, studies examining relationships among volunteer coworkers as a potential stressor are sorely lacking. The current study sought to examine coworker incivility as a predictor of volunteer burnout and turnover intentions using Conservation of Resources (COR) theory. COR theory postulates that environmental stressors lead to burnout or other negative outcomes by depleting an individual’s resources (Hobfoll, 1989, 2011). Resources are defined as personal characteristics or conditions valued by the individual that serve as a means for the attainment of objectives, and can be personal (e.g., traits), instrumental (e.g., proper tools for completing work), or physical (e.g., energy). The present study also explored resilient-coping as one factor that might help volunteers cope with the burnout emanating from incivility. Results indicated that volunteers higher coworker incivility was associated with greater burnout and subsequent turnover intentions. Additionally, the relationship between incivility and turnover intentions in this sample operated fully through burnout. Unfortunately, resilient-coping does not look like an effective strategy for managing the effects of incivility. Researchers should continue to explore strategies and methods to help volunteers cope with incivilit

Retaining Volunteers: Meaningfulness as a Personal Resource for Employed Mothers

Although the volunteer rates for both men and women are at the lowest point since 2002, women continue to volunteer at a higher rate than men across all age groups and education levels (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2014). Volunteers serving in youth development organizations in particular are comprised primarily of women with children, highlighting the importance of examining specific drivers of women’s volunteer retention. This study utilized the JD-R model to examine work-to-volunteer conflict as a predictor of volunteer intentions to quit through burnout in a sample of working mother volunteers. Work-to-volunteer conflict was found to be indirectly related to employed women’s volunteer turnover through burnout. Additionally, results indicated that meaningfulness moderated the effects of work-to-volunteer conflict on burnout and intentions to quit

Reducing the Influence of Constraints on Volunteers\u27 Word of Mouth Communication

This study utilized examined organizational constraints and burnout as a predictor of volunteers’ word of mouth communication valence, as well as a potential moderator. Satisfaction with volunteer contribution was found to moderate the indirect relationship between organizational constraints and word-of-mouth valence through burnout at the second stage

Putting Out Fires! Exploring Occupational Dispute Competence in the Workplace

Growing diversity in the workforce leading to an increasing number of disputes make hiring individuals who can work well with others and neutralize conflicts a priority. Although many organizations utilize a grievance or alternative dispute resolution system, the high costs associated with workplace conflict remain a prevalent problem. Occupational dispute competence, or an individual’s proficiency in deescalating and neutralizing disputes between and among others in the workplace, may help to address this need. The purpose of this exploratory study was to create and validate a scale to measure occupational dispute competence by examining relationships between occupational dispute competence and other traits associated with an individual’s ability to understand, interpret, and act upon emotions, such as emotional intelligence, workplace friendships, cognitive ability, and mindfulness. Results indicated that occupational dispute competence was related to emotional intelligence, cognitive ability, and the awareness dimension of mindfulness. Although occupational dispute competence was not a better predictor of workplace friendships than emotional intelligence alone, the absence of argumentation does not necessarily denote an abundance of friendly relationships at work. Thus, future studies should focus on occupational dispute competence as a predictor of outcomes more directly associated with a lack of conflict