Volunteer commitment and longevity in community-based conservation in Aotearoa New Zealand

Figures & data

Figure 1. The Manawatū region, Aotearoa New Zealand.

Figure 2. The proportion of volunteers’ commitment level when ranked from 1 (not committed) to 5 (very committed) (N = 70).

Table 1. The relationship between perceived commitment and perceived enjoyment of respondents (N = 70).

		Perceived enjoyment
		1 (Not enjoyable)	2	3	4	5 (Very enjoyable)	Total
Perceived commitment	1 (Not committed)	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%
	2	0.0%	0.0%	36.4%	4.8%	2.7%	8.6%
	3	0.0%	0.0%	18.2%	28.6%	2.7%	12.9%
	4	0.0%	0.0%	27.3%	33.3%	21.6%	25.7%
	5 (Very committed)	0.0%	0.0%	18.2%	33.3%	73.0%	51.4%

Table 2. Mean motivation factors for long-term volunteering, ranked from 1 (not important) to 5 (very important).

Long-term Motivation Factors	Mean	(S.D)	Variance
To care for the environment	4.59	0.73	0.53
To help the local community	4.19	1.08	1.17
To be outside, or amongst nature	3.96	1.31	1.71
As a connection to nature	3.96	1.24	1.54
To learn new skills, or knowledge	3.33	1.36	1.86
To educate others	3.22	1.48	2.2
For personal growth	3.19	1.49	2.22
To socialise with others	3.18	1.34	1.79
To be involved in a well-run project	3.15	1.48	2.18
As an obligation to a group	2.96	1.38	1.9
For stress relief or escape	2.68	1.4	1.95
To get exercise	2.67	1.29	1.68
To advance my career	1.74	1.28	1.65

Table 3. Comparison of motivation factors that encourage participation in community-based conservation initially and in the long-term.

Motivation Factor	Initial mean	Long-term mean	Difference in means
To socialise with others	2.83	3.18	0.35
For stress relief or escape	2.36	2.68	0.32
To help the local community	3.99	4.19	0.2
For personal growth	3.07	3.19	0.12
To be involved in a well-run project	3.03	3.15	0.12
To get exercise	2.55	2.67	0.12
To advance my career	1.73	1.74	0.1
To care for the environment	4.51	4.59	0.08
To be outside, or amongst nature	3.91	3.96	0.05
As a connection to nature	3.92	3.96	0.04
To educate others	3.18	3.22	0.04
To learn new skills, or knowledge	3.64	3.33	-0.31

Table 4. The relationship between commitment level and three long term motivation factors (N = 70).

		Importance of ‘to care for the environment’ as a motivational factor
		1	2	3	4	5	Total
Perceived commitment	1 (not committed)	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%
	2	0.0%	0.0%	50.0%	5.9%	6.3%	8.6%
	3	0.0%	0.0%	25.0%	23.5%	8.3%	12.9%
	4	0.0%	0.0%	0.00%	41.2%	25.0%	27.1%
	5 (very committed)	0.0%	0.0%	25.0%	29.4%	56.3%	47.1%
		Importance of ‘to be outside, or amongst nature’ as a motivational factor
		1	2	3	4	5	Total
Perceived commitment	1 (not committed)	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%
	2	42.9%	25.0%	0.0%	5.0%	3.2%	9.0%
	3	0.0%	50.0%	0.0%	10.0%	16.1%	13.4%
	4	14.3%	25.0%	40.0%	40.0%	19.4%	26.9%
	5 (very committed)	28.6%	0.0%	60.0%	45.0%	54.8%	46.3%
		Importance of ‘as a connection to nature’ As a motivational factor
		1	2	3	4	5	Total
Perceived commitment	1 (not committed)	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%
	2	50.0%	33.3%	0.0%	9.5%	0.0%	9.0%
	3	0.0%	33.3%	12.5%	9.5%	17.2%	13.4%
	4	16.7%	33.3%	50.0%	28.6%	20.7%	26.9%
	5 (very committed)	16.7%	0.0%	37.5%	52.4%	55.2%	46.3%

Table 5. Percentage of volunteer perceived connection to CBCG, place where they volunteer, and nature in general while volunteering.

Rank (1-5)	Connection to CBCG	Connection to place	Connection to nature
1 (no connection)	0.0%	2.9%	1.4%
2	7.1%	5.8%	5.7%
3	14.3%	7.3%	11.4%
4	30.0%	20.3%	30.0%
5 (very connected)	48.6%	63.8%	51.4%