Release date: Tuesday, April 18, 2006

CONTACT Community Services Volunteer20 Research Study Discovers There Are Six Different Volunteer Personality Profiles Among Greater Syracuse Residents

Syracuse, New York, April 18, 2006 – CONTACT Community Services, Inc. released the results of its study on volunteerism in the Greater Syracuse area, Volunteer20. Funded by the Central New York Community Foundation and designed and executed by Vincent McCabe, Inc., the study detailed individuals’ past volunteerism, willingness to help, willingness to volunteer and motivations for volunteering. Through advanced statistical analysis, the researchers identified six volunteer personality profiles among Greater Syracuse residents, each with different points of view on how and why they volunteer. Over 540 people completed surveys by telephone, in-person or online at www.volunteer20.com. Study findings are now available to the public at that Web site.

According to Elaine Learch, associate director of CONTACT Community Services, “The Volunteer20 initiative provided us with a new way of looking at volunteer recruitment and retention. We’re excited about putting these ideas into practice in our next campaign.”  Learch also noted, “The study included a comprehensive analysis of our current volunteers and, through the volunteer personality profiles, we were able to identify those individuals most likely to be interested in volunteering to staff CONTACT’s hotline.”

Jean Vincent, president of Vincent McCabe, Inc., the study’s designer and administrator, said, “The Volunteer20 study employed some of the most advanced statistical methods available to social science researchers today to build the volunteer personality profiles.” Vincent explained, “While nearly everyone will have some aspects of all of the various motivators or factors of importance when making a decision to volunteer, individuals will tend to cluster around particular motivators. Using multivariate statistical analysis, it was determined that in Greater Syracuse, there are six main volunteer personality profiles, or clusters of individuals sharing a similar point of view about volunteering. Through an understanding of the needs of each volunteer personality profile, a not-for-profit can better target possible volunteer groups as well as improve the messages they use to recruit and retain them.”

Vincent also noted that to easily understand the six volunteer personality profiles, names that reflected the general perspective of the group were developed. The six volunteer groups identified by their names and their percentage representation among the total survey respondents are as follows: 1. It’s Professionally Expected of Me (28%); 2. I’m Driven by Duty or Faith (13%); 3. It Needs to Fit My Lifestyle (21%); 4. I Love the Cause – Ask Me to Help (11%); 5. It’s Personally Enriching for Me (15%); and 6. I’m Limited by Work Demands (13%).

According to Vincent, organizations seeking volunteers need to match their volunteer opportunities to the individuals among the various profiles who are best suited. Individuals within Profile 1, It’s Professionally Expected of Me, are driven to volunteer by their employers’ expectations or a desire to improve skills essential to their professions. "These volunteers should be recruited at their places of business and the volunteer activity should be related to their profession or career goals," Vincent recommended. A 16-page, comprehensive report and guide to the use of the volunteer personality profiles is available to the public at the study Web site, www.volunteer20.com. The report includes planning grids that can be used by any organization seeking to recruit and retain volunteers.

Other findings of the study include the following: Of the randomly-contacted respondents to the Volunteer20 telephone survey, 69% indicated that they volunteered in the last 12 months and 43% indicated that they volunteered on a regular basis. Of total survey respondents, nearly everyone said they were likely or very likely to help a family member or friend. 80% indicated that they were likely or very likely to help through a formal organization such as a United Way agency, political organization or other not-for-profit group.

83% of the respondents stated they were likely or very likely to volunteer for activities that need their personal talents, which was the highest scoring type of activity after helping family and friends. Other top-scoring activities are: those that need volunteers’ work skills (79%), involve their children (66%), allow them the opportunity to provide emotional support (65%), and provide direct service to individuals (64%).

Respondents were asked to rate 27 different reasons for volunteering in terms of importance to them. The list of reasons for volunteering was developed from in-depth, personal interviews with Greater Syracuse area residents. The top-rated reason, feeling that they can make a difference, was rated somewhat important or extremely important by 90% of total survey respondents. Other highly-rated reasons include: caring about the cause (88%), finding the activity personally enriching (85%), finding the activity interesting (84%), meeting someone else’s need (83%), feeling that something important is being done (82%), having an opportunity to give back (80%), and helping their community (80%).

Data for the Volunteer20 study were collected by asking residents of the Greater Syracuse area, age 21 and older, to complete a confidential survey about giving time to help others. The majority of the 540 survey respondents (339) completed the survey online at www.volunteer20.com, while 154 participated in telephone interviews and 47 completed in-person surveys administered at two public locations. Special effort was made to recruit culturally diverse populations for the study by visiting selected churches and neighborhoods. Results based on telephone-survey, on-line and in-person responses were compared and found to be statistically similar. 75% of total respondents were female and 25%, male. Responses from males and female were also statistically similar. 13% of the respondents were minorities. The average age of the respondents was 46 years. The study has a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percent at a 95% level of confidence. The techniques used to develop the volunteer personality profiles allowed the researchers to infer from study data volunteer characteristics applicable to all demographic sub-segments of the Greater Syracuse area.

Vincent McCabe, Inc., the research administrator, is a full-service, strategic research firm specializing in the use of advanced statistical methods to discover subconscious factors that motivate behavior. For more information about Vincent McCabe, Inc., visit www.vincentmccabe.com or contact Jean Vincent, President, at 315-685-7227.

The study sponsor, the Central New York Community Foundation, has served the community for over 75 years, receiving, managing and distributing charitable funds to not-for-profit organizations in Onondaga and Madison Counties. The Community Foundation has over $100 million in assets, and awards more than $5 million in grants to not-for-profit organizations annually. For more information, visit www.cnycf.org.

The study initiator, CONTACT Community Services, Inc., a not-for-profit agency founded in 1971, provides telephone counseling, community and school-based services that help individuals and organizations create positive personal and social change. To learn more about CONTACT’s services and volunteer opportunities, visit www.contactsyracuse.org, send an inquiry to contact@contactsyracuse.org or call 315-251-1400.

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