| Summary: | 碩士 === 國立中正大學 === 社會福利所 === 97 === Youth volunteer participation in Taiwan is an important social phenomena that requires academic and policy attentions. This research collects data by the in-depth interview method. By interviewing 15 young volunteers, age 15-24, in Kaoshiung City we use a four-stage model to test our hypothses concerning the motives, contact, adaptation, and continuation of volunteer participation.
The study leads to several interesting results. Firstly, there are complex factors in affecting how young volunteer choose to continue or drop out of volunteering. Although how and when these factors worked in each stage are difficult to indentify, most of the respondents say that the first time they volunteered because they joined various types of clubs or had to attend Service-Learning classes in school. Therefore, some became volunteers at an earlier stage in life or volunteered automatically if their parents were volunteers.
Secondly, young volunteers tend to stay in their services, but going to universities or moving to other places may force them to stop volunteering. However, we find that personal cause is the main factor when the respondents are further explored.
Kaohsiung City held some International Activities in recent years and volunteering is one of the best ways to spread news and recruit participants. There are some non-profit organizational and governmental efforts to stir up youth volunteering, but more integration seems to be needed. Finally, by understanding the motives, process, and continuation of youth volunteering we hope to contribute to the knowledge of encouraging people to become volunteers and hope a “Volunteering Taiwan” will become reality.
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