Research Students   Projects and Activities Staff and Associates   Destination Management Upcoming Events and   Events Management   Special Announcements   Food and Wine   Capability Statements   Information Communication       Technology (ICT) in Tourism   Publications   Small Tourism Enterprises   Book Chapters   Tourism Economics   Conference Papers   Volunteers   Journal Articles   Online Survey   Monographs (selected list)   Tourism Futures PRIPs Application   Newsletter         Reports

Online Survey

An Investigation of Volunteering Flexibility in the Tourism Sector

INFORMATION TO PARTICIPANTS

A team of researchers from Victoria University, led by Dr Leonie Lockstone, is currently investigating volunteering flexibility in the tourism sector. The tourism-based organisation that referred you to this web page has given the researchers permission to approach its volunteers to invite them to participate in this study.

VOLUNTEER FLEXIBILITY SURVEY

Volunteers make a significant contribution to this sector. Many museums, visitor information centres, visitor attractions and special events would fail to fully operate, if at all, without the unpaid service of volunteers. Volunteering Australia, Australia’s peak body for advancing voluntary activity, has recognised that volunteers are increasingly calling for flexibility in their volunteer assignments. This could include flexibility in when and how often they volunteer and the tasks or jobs they do. The aim of this research is to provide a greater understanding of what types of flexibility volunteers want, and how and when tourism organisations are required to meet the flexibility needs of their volunteers in order to ensure positive outcomes for all parties involved.

To this end, we are asking volunteers and representatives (volunteer coordinators/managers) from the organisations they volunteer for about their shared approach to flexibility in relation to volunteer assignments and the rostering of volunteer work. This will involve participants to the project completing an online questionnaire which should take approximately 10-15 minutes of your time.

Participation in the project is completely voluntary meaning you will not be disadvantaged in anyway if you chose not to participate. All information will be collected in an anonymous fashion (the questionnaire you complete does not ask specific identifiers such as name and address). If you should chose to participate, you have the option of subsequently withdrawing from the project at any time before the end of the data collection period (30th November 2007). Data collected will be accessed only by the project investigators at Victoria University for the purposes of project analysis and reporting. No third parties shall have access (including the organisation you currently volunteer for). Data will be reported in a manner so that no individuals or organisations can be identified. Data will be stored securely and held for five years after the completion of the project.

If you are interested in participating in the project, completion of the online questionnaire will be taken as your informed consent to do so.

The information gathered as a result of the research will help to inform strategies relating to the effective management of volunteer workforces.

If you have any queries relating to the project please do not hesitate to contact Dr Leonie Lockstone on (03) 9919 3260 or by email at: leonie.lockstone@vu.edu.au.

We look forward to your valuable contribution to this important research.