“Don’t Harass the Staff” Volunteer Satisfaction and Organizational Interpersonal Culture in Animal Shelters

Abstract

Volunteers are a critical resource for many types of organizations, and efforts need to be made to foster their satisfaction and intention to continue their work. Using data from an online survey of 651 animal shelter volunteers, this research explores the role of staff/volunteer relationships in satisfaction with the volunteer experience and intention to quit. Based on correlational and regression analyses, the findings indicate that volunteers who are more negative about the staff/volunteer environment in their shelters were significantly less satisfied and more likely to think about quitting. Further there appears to be a relationship between the nature of the animal shelter and the roles of the volunteers and attitudes about the staff/volunteer environment, satisfaction, and intention to quit. Recommendations are made for policies and practices shelters can undertake to improve relationships between staff and volunteers.