Juggling Multiple Roles Older Adult Volunteer Study

Juggling Multiple Roles: An Examination of Role Conflict

Contact information:

Jennifer Crittenden, Ph.D., MSW, Project Principal Investigator

Phone: 207-262-7923

Purpose of the Research

Summary: As the nature of the “retirement years” continues to change in our society, older adults are increasingly occupying productive roles within their families, workplaces, and communities creating the opportunity for conflict for time and energy resources. The volunteer management sector is now faced with a critical task of engaging older adults who are increasingly giving of their time and talents to multiple life endeavors (roles). Specifically, the project utilized a national sample of current RSVP volunteers to examine the extent to which older adult volunteers experience role conflict between their volunteer role and other social roles that they occupy. This exploratory study examined the following research questions: 1) Does role conflict between work, caregiving, and informal helping roles and volunteer roles predict role satisfaction and intention to leave volunteerism among older adults? and 2) What are the compensatory strategies used by older adults to navigate role conflict and what benefits do older adults accrue in their volunteer roles that could effectively counterbalance role conflict?

Relevance for the field: Using the lens of successful aging theory, which suggests that positive aging is brought about by productive activity, and role theory which posits that multiple social roles can create the opportunity for conflict and enhancement between roles, this project will examine the practical implications for volunteer recruitment and retention in a time when volunteers are juggling multiple responsibilities.

This project is being led by Jennifer Crittenden, Ph.D., MSW, Assistant Professor of Social Work and Associate Director of the University of Maine Center on Aging.

Older Adult Volunteer Study: Related Materials

It Helps Me Find Balance”: Older Adult Perspectives on the Intersection of Caregiving and Volunteering

Authors: Jennifer A. Crittenden, Rachel L. Coleman, & Sandra S. Butler

Home Healthcare Services Quarterly

Abstract: Caregiving is an increasingly prevalent experience that can negatively impact health and well-being. Volunteerism, long associated with positive benefits for older adults, is one potential strategy that can be used to counteract caregiver stress. A national cohort of existing older adult volunteers was engaged to explore the intersection of volunteering and caregiving through qualitative analysis of respondent comments using the lens of role theory. Survey responses from 533 older volunteers were analyzed. Role conflict and role enhancement themes were examined, with time constraints and reduced energy emerging as the perceived causes of conflict between the caregiver and volunteer roles. Caregivers discussed benefits to their caregiving role, including respite, learning, access to information and resources relevant to caregiving, increased socialization and improved physical and cognitive health. Findings indicate that volunteering can be framed as a health and well-being intervention for caregivers.

Webinar Recording

A webinar was held on May 5, 2020 for RSVP sites that participated in phases I & II of the project research. This webinar covered an overview of the study and findings to-date and future directions for the Phase III.

Click here to view the webinar recording

Click here for the webinar slides

Juggling Multiple Roles: An Examination of Role Conflict- Brief Report

This brief report is a condensed overview of Phases I (volunteer survey) & II (program survey) of the Older Adult Volunteer Study. In order to view or download this resource, go to https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/moca_research/43.

Juggling Multiple Roles: An Examination of Role Conflict- Dissertation

Go to https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/etd/2975/ to view or download the full dissertation produced from findings associated with the first phase of the Older Adult Volunteer Study (volunteer survey). Phase I was the first of a multi-stage national study investigating the ways in which older adults volunteer when juggling multiple roles, such as that of a caregiver, paid worker, or informal volunteer on top of formal volunteering with the Retired and Senior Volunteer Program.

Juggling Multiple Roles: An Examination of Role Conflict Phase II: RSVP Program Survey Report

Go to https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/moca_research/39/ to view or download the year-end report outlining the second phase of a multi-stage national study investigating the ways in which older volunteers volunteer when juggling multiple roles, such as that of a caregiver, paid worker, or informal volunteer as well as a formal volunteer with the Retired and Senior Volunteer Program. Phase II tapped a sample of RSVP directors across the U.S. Twenty-one programs responded identifying a range of strategies including: flexible scheduling, integrating care recipients into volunteer assignments, offering resource referral to caregivers, and expanded office hours for older workers. Findings provide strategies that can be replicated across program sectors to retain older adult volunteers.

Juggling Multiple Roles: An Examination of Role Conflict Phase III: RSVP Profiles and Program Practices

Go to https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/moca_research/45/ to view or download this report. This report of detailed findings from follow-up interviews with RSVP program sites that describes practices that programs currently use to support older adult volunteers who are also working and caregiving in addition to their volunteer work. The following themes were identified among the responses as practices that support volunteer involvement by working and caregiving older adults: 1) On-boarding processes that are sensitive to the needs of caregivers and workers including the subthemes of intake procedures and volunteer training; 2) The provision of breaks and flexible scheduling for volunteers; 3) Time-limited and intermittent volunteer opportunities; 4) The use of substitute volunteer positions; 5) Remote and home-based volunteer opportunities; and 6) Supports, resources and wellness resources, with a subtheme that touches on collaborative practices.

Project Tipsheets for Older Volunteers and Volunteer Programs:

Tips for Caregivers:

Go to https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/moca_research/40/ to view or download evidence-based tips for caregivers produced using the findings from the Older Adult Volunteer Study.

Tips for Older Workers:

Go to https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/moca_research/41/ to view or download evidence-based tips for older workers produced using the findings from the Older Adult Volunteer Study.

Tips for Volunteer Managers:

Go to https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/moca_research/42/ to view or download evidence-based tips for volunteer managers produced using the findings from the Older Adult Volunteer Study.

Study Posters/Presentations

Role Enhancement for Older Volunteers: How Does Formal Volunteering Complement Other Life Roles

Go to https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/moca_research/44/ to view or download this poster. This poster presentation was given at the Aging in America Conference in New Orleans, Louisiana on April 17, 2019.

Poster Abstract: The phase I survey for this project was implemented across 55 RSVP program sites nationally engaging a total of 1,697 older adult volunteer who returned surveys (response rate = 25%). These surveys yielded 1,229 individual write-in responses regarding perceived ways that formal volunteering accrues benefits for volunteers in their worker, caregiver, and informal helping roles. Benefits of formal volunteering reported by respondents included: new work connections and work-related skills, new employment and new employment opportunities for older adult workers; caregiver responses indicated increased socialization in general and the opportunity to connect with other caregivers, along with an increased awareness of community resources available to caregivers. Those who also participated in informal helping reported a greater awareness of community needs along with personal growth that benefited their informal helping role.

Organizational and Older Adult Volunteer Perspectives on Role Conflict Management Strategies

Go to https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/moca_research/37/ to view or download this poster. This poster presentation was given at the Gerontological Society of America Conference on November 13, 2019 in Austin, TX.

Poster Abstract: A two-phase research study was completed with 1,697 Retired and Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP) volunteers (ages 55+) drawn from 55 RSVP program sites across the country (Phase I) with a follow-up survey of RSVP programs conducted with 17 sites (Phase II). Grounded in role theory, the Phase I volunteer survey explored role conflict in addition to self-reported strategies used to mitigate the experience of role conflict. The Phase II program survey gathered responses from volunteer managers and staff about the strategies used by their older adult volunteers to avoid and address role conflict. Results from both surveys were examined for commonalities and divergence between older adult perspectives and volunteer manager perspectives.

Vying for Time: How Programs Engage and Support a Busy Cadre of Baby Boomer and Older Adult Volunteers

Go to https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/moca_research/38/ to view or download this poster. This poster presentation was sponsored by The Association for Research on Nonprofit Organizations and Voluntary Action (ARNOVA) and presented in San Diego, California on November 21, 2019.

Poster Abstract: For many nonprofits, older adult volunteers are the bedrock of the volunteer workforce. However, older adults are increasingly leaving their volunteer work to pursue paid employment and family caregiving. To explore how the volunteer sector has responded to this reality, a survey was distributed to 55 Retired and Senior Volunteer Programs (RSVPs) across the U.S. Twenty-one programs responded identifying a range of strategies including: flexible scheduling, integrating care recipients into volunteer assignments, offering resource referral to caregivers, and expanded office hours for older workers. Findings provide strategies that can be replicated across program sectors to retain older adult volunteers.

Volunteer Participation of Older Adults: A Comparison Between Volunteers in the Retired and Senior Volunteer Program and American Time Use Survey

Go to https://video.maine.edu/media/Rachel+Coleman/1_8u36jth7/178037821 to view this poster presentation. This poster presentation was given at the virtual UMaine Student Symposium event on October 2, 2020.

Authors: Rachel Coleman and Jennifer Crittenden

This poster presentation compares the volunteer study data collected during Phase I to the American Time Use Survey to identify predictors of volunteer participation across both datasets.

A Look at Older Adult Volunteers: Volunteers with a Caregiving Role for their Grandchildren

Go to https://video.maine.edu/media/Abbie+Hartford/1_fdfgtc6b/178037821 to view this poster presentation. This poster presentation was given at the virtual UMaine Student Symposium event on October 2, 2020.

Authors: Abbie Hartford and Jennifer Crittenden

Discussed in this poster presentation are the results of further analyses from Phase I study data that demonstrate the health and well-being advantages of intergenerational contact and caregiving. Implications include the need to support and encourage intergenerational connections for older adult volunteers. Further, the importance of RSVP recognizing the benefits volunteers caring for grandchildren have is key in order to better promote and incorporate this role more often.

The Effects of Volunteering on the Health of Older Adults in a Caregiving Role

Go to https://video.maine.edu/media/Rachel+Coleman/1_geeh36vi78037821 to view this poster presentation. This poster presentation was given at the virtual UMaine Student Symposium event on April 16, 2021.

Authors: Rachel Coleman and Jennifer Crittenden

This poster presentation examines health changes experienced by caregivers who transitioned from not volunteering into a volunteer role over time. Data for this analysis was drawn from the National Study of Caregivers (NSOC).

A Look at Older Adult Volunteers: Volunteers with a Caregiving Role for their Grandchildren

Go to https://video.maine.edu/media/Abbie+Hartford+UMSS21/1_68q804o5 to view this poster presentation. This poster presentation was given at the virtual UMaine Student Symposium event on April 16, 2021.

Authors: Abbie Hartford and Jennifer Crittenden

Discussed in this poster presentation are the results from interviews examining the specific practice strategies that RSVP programs use to support older volunteers who are also working and caregiving.

Questions?

If you have questions about the project, please contact Jennifer Crittenden at 207-262-7923 or Jennifer.crittenden@maine.edu.

Acknowledgments

All phases of this study have been carried out in collaboration with RSVP programs around the country. A special acknowledgment goes out to the National Association of RSVP Directors (NARSVPD) and the National Senior Corps Association (NSCA) for their help in connecting with individual sites.

This study was funded as a dissertation award. The material posted to this website is based upon work funded by the AmeriCorps Office of Research and Evaluation and AmeriCorps Seniors under Grant No. 17REHME001 through the National Service and Civic Engagement Research Grant competition. Opinions or points of view expressed on this page, or documents linked to this page, are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official position of, or a position that is endorsed by, AmeriCorps or AmeriCorps Seniors.