On Volunteering – Mostly from Female Perspective

Abstract

The goal of this research was to determine students’ perceptions of acquired knowledge and information (and experience) on volunteering; personal preparedness/competence for volunteering; the usefulness of different teaching methods; and potential changes in the students’ attitude towards volunteering. In addition to the above, the participants were asked to state their reasons for deciding to volunteer in the future, the desirable characteristics of volunteers, and the personal qualities they wish to develop and advance to be prepared for volunteering. The research sample was limited by the number of students in a course and consisted of 24 female students and one male student. Therefore, the research’s focus on the female perspective of volunteering is justified. The research results confirmed the following: the appropriateness and usefulness of the course content, which enabled the students to acquire scientific-theoretical and expert knowledge and information on volunteering; the manner in which the students evaluated their preparedness and competence for volunteering as excellent or very good; the manner in which different forms of work contributed to the personal preparedness and competence evaluation, which resulted in the students’ change of attitude towards volunteering – ‘I want to volunteer’ – or confirmation of this attitude. Furthermore, the participants stated different reasons for their volunteering activities; they specified the desired characteristics of a successful volunteer and a number of personal qualities they wish to develop to be prepared for volunteering. It is precisely this aspect (self-improvement) that is considered extremely important in the early years of study, as it might be expected that the participants will continuously work on empowering themselves and acquiring and improving their own competencies (in all areas). The theoretical framework of the research is William Glasser’s Choice Theory.