Abstract
Voluntary work in Charities is a constantly growing reality: in particular, in the last few years, voluntary work in hospitals has become of great importance, marking a substantial increase of commitment in social issues. However, at the same time, volunteering Charities have been plagued by the increase of the phenomenon of dropout, that is, volunteers abandoning the Charitable Association they’re working in, often after a relatively short period of activity. In this study, we attempted to verify if and how active and dropped out volunteers perceive their own activity as a source of anxiety and stress. Our data show that both active and dropped out volunteers show high levels of burnout; in fact, dropped out volunteers show higher levels of burnout, especially of emotional exhaustion, in comparison with active volunteers. Subsequently, we identified the factors potentially assuming the role of mediators or moderators in the direct relation involving the status of voluntary work activity and the levels of anxiety and burnout. Our study demonstrates that coping strategies and the relationship established with hospital workers can be considered good moderators.
Résumé
Le travail bénévole au sein des organismes de bienfaisance est une réalité toujours croissante. Au cours des dernières années, il est devenu de plus en plus important dans les hôpitaux, marquant ainsi une hausse importante de l’engagement envers les enjeux sociaux. Les organismes de bienfaisance bénévoles ont cependant été simultanément touchés par la hausse du phénomène de décrochage, soit le départ des bénévoles après une période d’activité relativement courte. La présente étude tente de déterminer si et à quel point les bénévoles actifs et ceux qui abandonnent perçoivent leurs activités comme une source d’anxiété et de stress. Nos données démontrent que les bénévoles actifs et qui abandonnent sont en grand nombre victimes d’épuisement et que ces derniers le sont davantage que les bénévoles actifs, surtout sur le plan émotif. Nous avons donc identifié les facteurs qui jouent potentiellement le rôle de médiateurs ou modérateurs dans la relation directe entre l’état d’activité bénévole et les niveaux d’anxiété et d’épuisement. Notre étude démontre que les stratégies d’adaptation et la relation avec les travailleurs d’hôpitaux pourraient être perçues comme de bons modérateurs.
Zusammenfassung
Die ehrenamtliche Arbeit in Wohltätigkeitsorganisationen ist eine konstant wachsende Realität. Insbesondere in Krankenhäusern hat die ehrenamtliche Arbeit in den letzten Jahren sehr an Bedeutung gewonnen, was für einen starken Anstieg des Engagements für soziale Belange spricht. Gleichzeitig sind Wohltätigkeitsorganisationen jedoch auch von dem zunehmenden Phänomen des Ausscheidens geplagt, d. h. Ehrenamtliche, die die Wohltätigkeitsorganisation nach häufig relativ kurzer ehrenamtlicher Tätigkeit wieder verlassen. In dieser Studie wollten wir prüfen, ob und wie aktive und ausgeschiedene ehrenamtliche Mitarbeiter ihre eigene Tätigkeit als Ursache für Ängste und Stress wahrnehmen. Unsere Daten zeigen, dass sowohl aktive als auch ausgeschiedene Ehrenamtliche ein hohes Maß an Burnout aufweisen. Tatsächlich leiden ausgeschiedene Ehrenamtliche im Vergleich zu aktiven Ehrenamtlichen an einem höheren Grad von Burnout und insbesondere an emotionaler Erschöpfung. Anschließend ermittelten wir die Faktoren, die möglicherweise die Rolle der Mediatoren bzw. Moderatoren im direkten Verhältnis zwischen der ehrenamtlichen Tätigkeit und dem Ausmaß von Ängsten und Burnout übernehmen. Unsere Studie zeigt, dass die Bewältigungsstrategien und die Beziehung zu den Krankenhausmitarbeitern als gute Moderatoren erachtet werden können.
Resumen
El trabajo voluntario en las organizaciones benéficas es una realidad que crece constantemente: en particular, en los últimos años, el trabajo voluntario en hospitales se ha vuelto de una gran importancia, marcando un sustancial aumento del compromiso en cuestiones sociales. Sin embargo, al mismo tiempo, el voluntariado en las organizaciones benéficas se ha visto acosado por el incremento del fenómeno de la deserción, es decir, voluntarios que abandonan la Asociación Benéfica en la que están trabajando, a menudo después de un período de actividad relativamente corto. En el presente estudio, tratamos de verificar si y cómo perciben los voluntarios activos y desertores su propia actividad como fuente de ansiedad y estrés. Nuestros datos muestran que tanto los voluntarios activos como los desertores muestran niveles altos de agotamiento; de hecho, los voluntarios desertores muestran niveles más elevados de agotamiento, especialmente de agotamiento emocional, en comparación a los voluntarios activos. Posteriormente, identificamos los factores que asumen potencialmente el papel de mediadores o moderadores en la relación directa que implica el estatus de la actividad de trabajo voluntario y los niveles de ansiedad y agotamiento. Nuestro estudio demuestra que las estrategias de enfrentamiento y la relación establecida con los trabajadores de hospitales pueden ser consideradas buenos moderadores.
摘要
慈善机构内的志愿工作不断地增长:特别是在过去几年里,医院的慈善工作变得非常重要,标志着人们对社会问题的投入有了实质性的增长。 然而,同时,志愿型慈善机构饱受日益增加的人员退出现象的困扰。人员退出现象是指志愿者(通常是在经过相对短期的服务之后)退出他们所服务的慈善机构。 在本研究中,我们尝试验证积极志愿者与退出志愿者是否将其自己活动视作焦虑与压力的来源,并且验证这些志愿者是如何将其自己活动视作焦虑与压力的来源的。 我们的数据显示,积极志愿者与退出志愿者都出现了高程度的倦怠;事实上,与积极志愿者相比,退出志愿者的倦怠程度更高。随后,我们找出了可能起着缓冲或缓和作用的因素,这些因素与志愿工作活动状态以及焦虑与倦怠水平直接相关。我们的研究展示,应对策略以及所建立的与医院工作者之间的关系可能被视作较好的起缓和作用的因素。
ملخص
العمل التطوعي في الجمعيات الخيرية هو واقع في تزايد مستمر: بشكل خاص في السنوات القليلة الماضية، أصبح العمل التطوعي في المستشفيات ذو أهمية كبيرة، مما يشكل زيادة كبيرة في الإلتزام في المشاكل الإجتماعية. مع ذلك، في نفس الوقت، الجمعيات الخيرية التطوعية قد تعاني من زيادة ظاهرة الإنشقاق، وهذا هو تخلي المتطوعين عن الجمعية الخيرية التي يعملون فيها، في كثير من الأحيان بعد فترة قصيرة نسبيا” من النشاط.في هذه الدراسة، حاولنا التحقق من كيف ينظرالمتطوعين النشطاء والمنشقين لنشاطهم كمصدر للقلق والتوتر. تشير البيانات المتوفرة لدينا أن كل من المتطوعين النشطاء والمنشقين يظهرون مستويات عالية من الإرهاق. في الواقع، المتطوعين المنشقين يظهروا مستويات أعلى من الإرهاق، خصوصا” من الإجهاد العاطفي، بالمقارنة مع المتطوعين النشطاء. في وقت لاحق، حددنا العوامل المحتملة مع إفتراض دور الوسطاء أو المشرفين في العلاقة المباشرة التي تنطوي على وضع نشاط العمل التطوعي ومستويات القلق والإرهاق. تبين دراستنا أن إستراتيجيات التعامل والعلاقة المحددة مع العاملين في المستشفى يمكن إعتبارهما وسطاء جيدين.
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This study was made possible by the cooperation of ABIO Brianza, AVO Sesto San Giovanni, and AMI Milano.
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Ripamonti, C.A., Pasquarelli, L., Ravasi, S. et al. Dropout of Hospital Volunteers in Italy. Voluntas 28, 44–68 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11266-016-9769-1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11266-016-9769-1