Research That Matters (January 17 - 20, 2008)

Purpose: In the late summer of 2005, Hurricanes Katrina and Rita (Hurricanes KR) brought about an unprecedented catastrophe to the entire Gulf Coast. Social work students in the geographical locations most affected by the storms and their aftermath experienced relocation, stressors, loss, and adjustment. These students were required to meet their own needs and those of their families (as direct victims of the storms) as well as continue with their study and internship obligations. At the same time, they were called upon to provide disaster services both as interns and as volunteers in their own communities. In the midst of this environmental context, our study examined what demographic factors, life experiences or stressors, and personal and professional values and beliefs were most likely to predict heightened volunteer activities. Few studies have investigated volunteerism among younger populations and especially in times of a major crisis.

Method: A total of 416 undergraduate and graduate students in four schools of social work completed a survey questionnaire within the first three months subsequent to Hurricanes KR. Students' volunteer experience in months/years prior to current hurricane event was measured with one item. Demographics included three items measuring age, ethnicity, and gender. Students identified prior traumas with an eight-item scale developed by the researchers. Students completed an 18-item hurricane-related stressors checklist to yield a composite score of stressors experienced in the month following Hurricanes KR. A 14-item scale was developed for measuring students' increased adherence to social work values. Altruism was measured with the 20-item Altruism Scale. The three-item faith measure was a summation of scales that measured degree of faith or spirituality. The dependent variable, volunteerism, was measured with a list of 16 common activities accomplished by volunteers during Hurricanes KR and their aftermath. A final score on the volunteerism measure was obtained by summing activities undertaken by each student. Using stepwise regression (backward), three models were individually tested with significant variables then added to the final multiple regression analysis. For the first regression, key demographics and previous volunteer experience were added. Next, hurricane-related stressors and previous traumas were put into the regression. Faith, altruism, and increased commitment to social work values) were entered into a separate regression.

Results: Among predictors of students' volunteerism during Hurricanes KR and their aftermath, the group level (school) variable, age, previous volunteerism, number of hurricane-related stressors, number of previous traumas, altruism, and increased commitment to social work values were significant contributors to students' volunteer activities (R = .60, p < .001). The strongest predictor of volunteer activity was whether the hurricane experience resulted in an increased commitment to social work values (beta = .26, p < .001). Those who valued social work and its tenets more after the storms were more likely to report higher levels of volunteerism.

Implications: These findings support the importance of instilling and reinforcing social work values in schools of social work, as well as examining the role of social work values in promoting student activism in times of disaster.