Impact of transnational exchange experiences on senior volunteers and organisations Senior European Volunteers Exchange Network Final meeting Brussels,

Impact of transnational exchange experiences on senior volunteers

and organisations

Senior European Volunteers Exchange Network

Final meeting

Brussels, 11 October 2011

Research aims and target groups

Analysis of learning impacts of trans-national exchanges on

1. Senior volunteers- Reasons and motivations- Facilitating framework conditions- Impact on personal skills and competencies- Impact on home communities

2. Hosting, sending or coordinating organisations - Self-concept and objectives- Impact on management- Impact on practical arrangements

Survey among senior volunteers: Methodology

• Survey by written questionnaires – Based on existing communication data – Supported by SEVEN network partners

• Wave 1– Participants of projects 2000 – 2005– 293 personal mailings– Response rate: 42% (122 respondents)

• Wave 2– Participants of recent projects– 62 respondents to online questionnaires

Senior volunteers:Sociodemographic characteristics

Gender of volunteers (%)

29,8 34,9

65,170,2

0

20

40

60

80

100

Wave 1 Wave 2

Male Female

The typical project participant– is retired – is in their early sixties– lives in a big city– has already volunteered before– stayed abroad for 2 or 3 weeks – had to speak a foreign language– worked in fields of culture,

ecology, social work and education

Senior volunteers:Strongest reasons and motivations

Helping motives Learning motives

25 25

36

23

37

19

312124

18

33

16

0

20

40

60

80

100

Make the worlda better place

Help otherpeople

Transferexperience

Curiosity Stay in countrywithout being

tourist

Needed newchallenge

Wave 1 Wave 2

Senior volunteers:Framework conditions of the exchange

Personal development facilitated

48 46 43

21

6570

65

4636 3435

51

29

51

71

52

0

20

40

60

80

100

Writteninformation

about placement

Personalcontacts before

exchange

Pre-departuretraining

Workingconditions

Lodgingconditions

Financialconditions

Feedbackseminar

Support forfollow-upactivities

Wave 1 Wave 2

Senior volunteers: Impacts on personal skills and competencies (1)

Work performance Ability to manage diversity

47

57

41

64

47

6560

68

4236 35

16

5355

32

55

0

20

40

60

80

100

Manage avoluntary work

project

Performvoluntary work

Work in ateam

Workindependently

Cope with diff.habits andcultures

Cope withpeople of diff.background

Make an dmaintainfriendship

Cope withyoung people

Wave 1 Wave 2

Senior volunteers: Impacts on personal skills and competencies (2)

Foreign language skills & technical knowledge Social competence

47 44

58 56

43

5452

15

54

15

0

20

40

60

80

100

Speak a foreignlanguage

Handle computer /internet

Adapt to changingconditions

Adapt to newsurroundings

Manage conflicts

Wave1 Wave 2

Senior volunteers: Impacts on personal skills and competencies (3)

• Realms with strongest improvements of skills and competencies:– Ability to manage a voluntary work project– Ability to perform voluntary work– Ability to cope with young people– Ability to cope with different habits and cultures

• Potential determinants for learning impacts: – No significant age relation ( - 60 / 61 - 70 / 71+ )– Very significant gender relation (e.g. conflict

management)– Significant duration relation ( - 2 weeks / 3 weeks + )

Senior volunteers:Impacts on home communities

42

19

44

81

36 32

12

75

0

20

40

60

80

100

Publicpresentations

Promotion oftransnationalexchanges

Preperation ofpeer volunteers

Monitoring offoreign

volunteers

Contribution totown twinning

activities

Transnationallinks between

NGOs

New projects orinitiatives

Furtherdevelopment ofvoluntary work

Survey among exchange organisations:Methodology

• Respondents– SEVEN network partners, experienced in the trans-

national exchange of senior volunteers• Data collection by

– Explorative survey by written questionnaire with 14 respondents

– In-depth interviews with 8 organisation representatives

Exchange organisations:Structural characteristics

• Functions in the exchange projects– Hosting volunteers– Sending volunteers– Coordinators of exchange projects– Supporters of exchange project

• Types of organisations– Voluntary service organisations with a traditional focus on

educating young people– Local organisations working with or for senior volunteers,

with the approach of promoting active citizenship

Exchange organisations:Impacts on self-concept and objectives

• Active citizenship: Practice rather than training“I personally believe that active citizenship is very important and it is impossible to lecture about, people have to go out and see themselves.” (Organisation for Seniors, Lithuania)

• Intergenerational learning: Perception as group“Even though we provide the seniors a certain frame, a certain timetable, then at the end the volunteers in the placements end as a group, and that is part of the inter-generational learning that we have in this structure.” (Voluntary Service Organisation, Italy)

• Intercultural learning: Including professional knowledge transfer“We sent volunteers from different neighbourhood centres. (…) They realized that it is great to look beyond one’s own nose into another neighbourhood centre. And how interesting it can be to experience how things are run somewhere else, how different cultures are.” (Organisation for Seniors, Austria)

Exchange organisations:Impacts on management

• Building networks– The bigger the network, the more diverse the placements– Strong networks contribute to the success of the organisation

• Coping with senior volunteers– „Does the volunteer fit to the placement?“: No or few changes– „Does the placement fit to the volunteer?“: Considerable

number of changes• Training of group leaders

– Need for different strategies in guidance of seniors– Resentment of young group leaders if not adequately trained

Exchange organisations:Impacts on practical arrangements

• Duration of stay and daily working time– Shorter stays partly possible– Fewer working hours per day (partly if explicitly desired)

• Duties and workload– Less physical challenging work in the environmental area– Increasing number of offers in the social sector

• Accommodation– Single rooms and apartments– Shared rooms with 2-4 persons– Mass accommodation

Lessons learnt (1)

• Target group Trans-national exchange offers can be a stimulus to start volunteering, but transfer of voluntary work experiences is more likely and more intense with experienced volunteers.

• Duration The longer the stay the higher the learning impacts. Volunteers should be encouraged to stay 3 weeks at a minimum.

• Preparation Preparational measures are crucial and can vary in their contents; personal contacts between volunteers and host organisations, however, are also impartant.

Lessons learnt (2)

• Work contents Organisations must develop concepts dealing with wants and needs of senior volunteers and include opportunities to pass on their experiences.

• Follow-up measures Such measures are crucial to respond to the readiness of senior volunteers offering their experiences to their home communities.

• Accompanying support by local authorities Local authorities can directly benefit from trans-nationally active senior volunteers and have dispose of resources to support the exchanges.

Conclusions for further European exchange projects

• Conclusions for the design of SVPs

The current concept of Senior Volunteers Projects in the framework of the Lifelong Learning Programme reflects the most important aspects to enhance the learning of both senior volunteers and the participating organisations.

• Conclusions for future projects

It would be highly commendable to support a pilot project which tests and probes different ways and procedure for the valorisation of the newly gained experiences of senior volunteers at community level.

For more details, please read report on:

www.seven-network.eu

Thank you for your attention!