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Volunteering and well-being : do self-esteem, optimism, and perceived control mediate the relationship?

Mellor, David, Hayashi, Yoko, Firth, Lucy, Stokes, Mark, Chambers, Sue and Cummins, Robert 2008, Volunteering and well-being : do self-esteem, optimism, and perceived control mediate the relationship?, Journal of social service research, vol. 34, no. 4, pp. 61-70.

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Title Volunteering and well-being : do self-esteem, optimism, and perceived control mediate the relationship?
Author(s) Mellor, David
Hayashi, Yoko
Firth, Lucy
Stokes, Mark
Chambers, Sue
Cummins, Robert
Journal name Journal of social service research
Volume number 34
Issue number 4
Start page 61
End page 70
Publisher Routledge
Place of publication London, England
Publication date 2008-08
ISSN 0148-8376
1540-7314
Keyword(s) well-being
volunteering
self-esteem
optimism
perceived control
Summary Volunteers play a vital role in modern societies by boosting the labor force within both the public and private sectors. While the factors that may lead people to volunteer have been investigated in a number of studies, the means by which volunteering contributes to the well-being of such volunteers is poorly understood. It has been suggested through studies that focus on the absence of depression in volunteers that self-esteem and sense of control may be major determinants of the increased well-being reported by volunteers. This is consistent with the homeostatic model of subjective well-being, which proposes that self-esteem, optimism, and perceived control act as buffers that mediate the relationship between environmental experience and subjective well-being (SWB). Using personal well-being as a more positive measure of well-being than absence of depression, this study further explored the possible mediating role of self-esteem, optimism, and perceived control in the relationship between volunteer status and well-being. Participants (N = 1,219) completed a 97-item survey as part of the Australian Unity Wellbeing project. Variables measured included personal well-being, self-esteem, optimism, and a number of personality and psychological adjustment factors. Analyses revealed that perceived control and optimism, but not self-esteem, mediated the relationship between volunteer status and personal well-being.
Language eng
Field of Research 170113 Social and Community Psychology
HERDC Research category C1 Refereed article in a scholarly journal
HERDC collection year 2008
Copyright notice ©2008, The Haworth Press
Persistent URL http://hdl.handle.net/10536/DRO/DU:30017676

Document type: Journal Article
Collection: School of Psychology
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