Students and Voluntarism: Looking Into the Motives of Community Service Participants Export

@article{citeulike:5907404, abstract = {Growing involvement by American students in voluntary community service projects has been greeted as a sign of renewed idealism and civic-mindedness among the young. Yet prior research suggests that the motivation may be more complex and variable. Based on combined survey and interview data, this study finds that participants' identification with relatively altruistic motives appears to be grounded in a norm of personal assistance rather than in broader social or political commitments. For many, direct engagement in the problems of vulnerable individuals and groups provides concrete experience and connectedness with people that are not readily available in other dimensions of the student role. While such motivational patterns may suggest the need for increased reflection during the service experience, they coincide with the increasing emphasis now placed on personal caring and empathy in the process of moral development. 10.3102/00028312028003543}, author = {Serow, Robert C.}, citeulike-article-id = {5907404}, citeulike-linkout-0 = {http://dx.doi.org/10.3102/00028312028003543}, citeulike-linkout-1 = {http://aer.sagepub.com/content/28/3/543.abstract}, citeulike-linkout-2 = {http://aer.sagepub.com/content/28/3/543.full.pdf}, day = {1}, doi = {10.3102/00028312028003543}, journal = {Am Educ Res J}, keywords = {action, community, student}, month = {January}, number = {3}, pages = {543--556}, posted-at = {2009-10-07 21:14:15}, priority = {2}, title = {Students and Voluntarism: Looking Into the Motives of Community Service Participants}, url = {http://dx.doi.org/10.3102/00028312028003543}, volume = {28}, year = {1991} }

TY - JOUR ID - citeulike:5907404 L3 - citeulike-article-id:5907404 N2 - Growing involvement by American students in voluntary community service projects has been greeted as a sign of renewed idealism and civic-mindedness among the young. Yet prior research suggests that the motivation may be more complex and variable. Based on combined survey and interview data, this study finds that participants' identification with relatively altruistic motives appears to be grounded in a norm of personal assistance rather than in broader social or political commitments. For many, direct engagement in the problems of vulnerable individuals and groups provides concrete experience and connectedness with people that are not readily available in other dimensions of the student role. While such motivational patterns may suggest the need for increased reflection during the service experience, they coincide with the increasing emphasis now placed on personal caring and empathy in the process of moral development. 10.3102/00028312028003543 IS - 3 JF - Am Educ Res J EP - 556 TI - Students and Voluntarism: Looking Into the Motives of Community Service Participants VL - 28 SP - 543 KW - action KW - community KW - student AU - Serow, Robert PY - 1991/01/01/ UR - http://dx.doi.org/10.3102/00028312028003543 ER -