Varma Vijay R, Carlson Michelle C, Parisi Jeanine M, Tanner Elizabeth K, McGill Sylvia, Fried Linda P, Song Linda H, Gruenewald Tara L
Department of Mental Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, Maryland.
Johns Hopkins School of Nursing, Baltimore, Maryland.
Gerontologist. 2015 Dec;55(6):1038-49. doi: 10.1093/geront/gnu011. Epub 2014 Mar 3.
Experience Corps (EC) represents a high-intensity, intergenerational civic engagement activity where older adults serve as mentors and tutors in elementary schools. Although high-intensity volunteer opportunities are designed to enhance the health and well being of older adult volunteers, little is known about the negative and positive aspects of volunteering unique to intergenerational programs from the volunteer's perspective.
Stressors and rewards associated with volunteering in EC were explored in 8 focus group discussions with 46 volunteers from EC Baltimore. Transcripts were coded for frequently expressed themes.
Participants reported stressors and rewards within 5 key domains: intergenerational (children's problem behavior, working with and helping children, observing/facilitating improvement or transformation in a child, and developing a special connection with a child); external to EC (poor parenting and children's social stressors); interpersonal (challenges in working with teachers and bonding/making social connections); personal (enjoyment, self-enhancement/achievement, and being/feeling more active); and structural (satisfaction with the structural elements of the EC program).
Volunteers experienced unique intergenerational stressors related to children's problem behavior and societal factors external to the EC program. Overall, intergenerational, interpersonal, and personal rewards from volunteering, as well as program structure may have balanced the stress associated with volunteering. A better understanding of stressors and rewards from high-intensity volunteer programs may enhance our understanding of how intergenerational civic engagement volunteering affects well being in later life and may inform project modifications to maximize such benefits for future volunteers and those they serve.
“经验军团”（EC）是一项高强度的代际公民参与活动，老年人在小学担任导师和辅导员。尽管高强度的志愿者机会旨在增进老年志愿者的健康和福祉，但从志愿者的角度来看，对于代际项目特有的志愿服务的消极和积极方面知之甚少。
通过与来自巴尔的摩“经验军团”的46名志愿者进行8次焦点小组讨论，探讨了参与“经验军团”志愿服务相关的压力源和回报。对访谈记录进行编码，以找出频繁出现的主题。
参与者报告了5个关键领域内的压力源和回报：代际（儿童的问题行为、与儿童合作及帮助儿童、观察/促进儿童的进步或转变，以及与儿童建立特殊联系）；“经验军团”外部（不良养育方式和儿童的社会压力源）；人际（与教师合作中的挑战以及建立联系/建立社会关系）；个人（享受、自我提升/成就，以及变得/感觉更活跃）；以及结构（对“经验军团”项目结构要素的满意度）。
志愿者经历了与儿童问题行为以及“经验军团”项目外部的社会因素相关的独特代际压力源。总体而言，志愿服务带来的代际、人际和个人回报以及项目结构可能平衡了与志愿服务相关的压力。更好地理解高强度志愿者项目的压力源和回报，可能会增进我们对代际公民参与志愿服务如何影响晚年福祉的理解，并可能为项目改进提供参考，以便为未来的志愿者及其服务对象最大化此类益处。
