Discusses misconceptions about teen volunteers in public libraries: teens who hang out make good volunteers; teens who apply want to work; parents aren't important; incorporating volunteers is easy; enthusiasm means commitment; volunteers will tell you if they don't enjoy the job; non-performers are easy to fire; teens volunteer because they need…

A survey of 328 volunteers serving on sports committees in Australia found that organizational commitment was higher in organizations with open decision making, conflict resolution, and attention to group process. Positive, effective committee functioning led to lower turnover. (SK)

Discusses the benefits and costs associated with participation in voluntary organizations. Suggests that understanding benefits and costs is important because they can be used to enhance performance in voluntary groups. Discusses implications of research and makes recommendations for further research. (Author/JOW)

Performance feedback methods in paid work can be applied to the management of volunteers. A survey of 32 Western Australian organizations indicated that 21 provided feedback based on performance standards in the job description. (SK)

Includes "Introduction to International Perspectives" (Allen); "Volunteerism in the Welfare State: The Case of Denmark" (Habermann); "Grassroots Organizing in Bangladesh" (Chowdhury); and "Volunteerism in Latin America" (Guerra). (SK)

Reviews achievements during the first 50 years of 4-H club work, including volunteer leadership development, funding support, and response to society's needs during the war years. Demonstrates how 4-H has changed to meet societal needs while remaining true to the original mission. (SK)

Excerpts from an Internet debate identify issues and opinions on mandatory community service as a graduation requirement and court-ordered volunteering. The debate ranges over such topics as quality of the service experience, freedom of choice, intended outcomes, and values conflicts. (SK)

A survey of 162 Australian college students (70% with volunteering experience) showed that despite concerns about time constraints, 92% would be interested in volunteering. They felt students would be attracted to volunteering by credits, relevant work, references for employers, and flexible time slots. (SK)

Explains the Open Directory Project (ODP), an attempt to catalog the World Wide Web by creating a human-compiled Web directory. Discusses the history of the project; open source models; the use of volunteer editors; quality control; problems and complaints; and use of ODP data by commercial services such as Google. (LRW)

Comparison of volunteers at the Olympic Games in Lillehammer in 1994 (n=200) and Sydney in 2000 (n=200) showed they were strongly motivated by national pride, social contact, and friendship. Learning was an important motivator for younger volunteers. Increased job and social skills and knowledge were common outcomes. (Contains 22 references.) (SK)

Although the ideal of volunteerism is altruistic, surveys indicate that most volunteers are motivated by personal development. Recruitment and retention thus hinge on meaningful and inclusive work. Volunteerism is also not a substitute but a supplement for public or private sector responsibility. (SK)

Describes how the director of the Office of Human Research Protections has an amiable approach that emphasizes cooperation in oversight of studies with human subjects, but isn't afraid to suspend programs that violate federal regulations. (EV)

Secondary and middle school agriculture teachers in New Mexico (n=90) considered volunteers essential program components. Volunteers served as chaperones, guest speakers, event coaches, and in student organizations. The 13% who did not use them were either new, had small programs, or found it time consuming. Benefits included exposing students to…

Hispanic Americans in Cleveland, Ohio were interviewed about volunteerism. Six themes were identified: (1) influence of family and friends; (2) importance of volunteering to benefit youth; (3) importance of church and religious beliefs; (4) volunteering as a requirement; (5) connections between volunteerism and the community; and (6) personal…

Heroism consists of actions undertaken to help others, despite the possibility that they may result in the helper's death or injury. The authors examine heroism by women and men in 2 extremely dangerous settings: the emergency situations in which Carnegie medalists rescued others and the holocaust in which some non-Jews risked their lives to…