Survey of Online Volunteers 1997 - 1998 Summary

There are 42 responses to this survey from March 3 1997 through December 1998. Note that respondants often did not answer all of the questions.

You can see all answers to this survey here on our Web site.

 
Summary

1. Of those who answered, how did they hear about this project?

   4 search engine (did not say which one); keyword "non-profit" or "volunteer"
   2 e-mail
   1 did research in government documents on volunteering at the GPO.gov web site
   1 Independent Charities website
   1 NY Times website
   

    
   
2. What state's are represented, most to least, by respondants?

   6 California
   3 New York
   3 North Carolina
   2 Colorado
   2 Florida
   2 Minnesota
   2 New Jersey
   2 Nova Scotia, Canada
   2 Pennsylvania
   2 Texas
   1 Arizona
   1 Georgia
   1 Illinois
   1 Indiana
   1 Maine
   1 Maryland
   1 Massachusetts
   1 Nebraska
   1 Nevada
   1 New Mexico
   1 Ohio
   1 Tamilnadu
   1 Tennessee
   1 Vermont
   1 Victoria, Australia
   1 Washington
   

    
   
3. Of the top 10 state's represented most, what cities are represented, most to least?

   2 Denver, CO
   1 Burlingame, CA
   1 Fresno, CA
   1 Los Angeles, CA
   1 Menlo Park, CA
   1 Salinas, CA
   1 San Francisco, CA
   1 Cortland, NY
   1 Fairport, NY
   1 New York City, NY
   1 Chapel Hill, NC
   1 Pine Level, NC
   1 Wagram, NC
   1 Odessa, FL
   1 West Palm Beach, FL
   1 Lakeville, MN
   1 Minneapolis, MN
   1 Cream Ridge, NJ
   1 Shrewsbury, NJ
   1 Halifax, Nova Scotia
   1 Monroeville, PA
   1 Philadelphia, PA
   1 Austin, TX
   1 Kerrville, TX
   

    
   
4. How many organizations had each of these individuals volunteered for, on average?

   22 1
   14 2-4
   4 5 or more
   1 No answer
   1 Can't recall
   

    
   
5. What were the top 5-10 types of assignments these volunteers did online?

   17 Created/maintained web site
   8 Researched information
   7 Online publishing of newsletters, brochures, etc.
   5 Helped with online promotions/activism
   4 Online help
   3 Aid in finding e-mail resources
   2 Conduct workshops/training
   2 Creating and maintaining databases
   2 Monitor scheduled chats
   

    
   
6. How long, on average, did a "virtual volunteering" stint(s) last, on average?

   3 one week
   6 two weeks to 1 month
   4 1-3 months
   31 more than 3 months
   

    
   
7. What were the top 5-10 ways a volunteer originally got together with the organization(s) they helped?

   11 Previous involvement or member
   11 Via the Internet
   7 Through a friend/family
   4 Personal contact
   4 Was recruited
   2 Newspaper, TV, or radio
   2 Through a mailing list
   1 Word of mouth
   

    
   
8. What percentage of these volunteered have volunteered offline?

   71.4% Do volunteer work offline
   

    
   
9. What are the top 10 reasons these respondants wanted to volunteer in general?

   18 To help others
   8 Strong belief in a particular need
   4 Sense of service, feels good to be helpful
   3 To share abilities and interests
   2 Changing careers
   2 Sidestep the politics and breakdown barriers
   1 Community Service
   1 Gain experience
   1 Runs in the family
   

    
   
10. What are the top 10 reasons these respondants wanted to provide volunteer support via the Internet?

    11 Ability/skills
    11 Easy to do and flexible schedule
    4 Disability very limiting
    4 Love of the Internet
    3 Develop skills and portfolio
    3 To reach a great number of people
    1 No transportation
    1 Payback for winning on the Internet
    1 People see me, not the chair
    

     
    
11. What are the top 10 things these respondants liked about volunteering via the Internet, as opposed to volunteering in-person/face-to-face?

    18 Time schedule
    4 Limitations of illness
    4 No drive time
    3 Easier and lessened degree of personal contact
    2 To reach more people
    1 A change to write
    1 Avoid distractions and stay out of office rivalries
    1 Efficient way to gather and distribute info
    1 Work independently
    

     
    
12. How did volunteering virtually allow some respondants to volunteer for an organization in ways they couldn't otherwise, and what percentage of respondants said that virtual volunteering had allowed such access?

    7 Health issue
    6 Flexibility
    2 Helping from halfway across the country
    1 Avoiding specific people
    1 Behind the scenes planner and expediter
    1 Got financial aid in exchange for services
    1 Transportation
    45.2% Of the respondants said that virtual volunteering had allowed such access.
    

     
    
13. What are the top 10 things these respondants disliked about volunteering via the Internet?

    9 Meeting people face-to-face
    3 Technical difficulties; slow connections, machines going down, etc.
    2 Time consuming
    1 Answering stupid questions on forms
    1 Keeping up with the status of the online volunteers
    1 No feedback
    1 Spam
    1 The horrible e-mails they got from the porn sites they were trying to close down.
    

     
    
14. What are the top 10 things organization(s) these respondants helped recognized/rewarded them, if at all?

    19 Thank yous
    7 Website link
    6 Nothing
    5 Positive recognition via e-mail
    4 Positive recognition in person
    3 Certificates
    3 T-shirt, caps, etc.
    2 "Volunteer of the Year" Award
    1 Enthusiasm
    1 Free website access
    1 Hours logged and report to Community Service
    

     
    
15. What percentage of respondants were not recognized/rewarded in any way?

    14.3% Were not recognized/rewarded in any way
    14.3% Did not answer the question.
    

     
    
16. What are the top 10 things these respondants said would make a virtual volunteering experiences more satisfying?

    6 Being able to do more
    5 More connections
    4 Knowing, for a fact, that it helped someone
    2 Better equipment
    2 More recognition
    1 A cure found
    1 Less spam
    1 More information
    1 More respect
    1 More visits to our site
    

     
    
17. What are the top 10 types of virtual volunteering opportunities these respondants wish were available but that they haven't yet encountered?

    2 Mentoring/homework help
    2 More volunteering opportunities
    2 Writing
    2 Large scale web-based design projects
    1 A hospice network
    1 Accuracy checks on websites for formal volunteers
    1 Compile a women's calendar or newsletter for New York City
    1 Data entry for people
    1 Encouragement
    1 More volunteers to get rid of porno
    1 Proofreading
    

     
    
18. Of those who responded, what is the ethnic background, by percentage of applicants?

    61.9% of identified as Anglo/Caucasian/of European descent/white
    0% who identified as of African descent/black
    2.4% who identified as Asian/East Indian
    0% who identified as Latino/Chicano/Hispanic
    0% who identified as American Indian/Native American
    9.5% who identified as something that could not be classified above, or a person of mixed ethnicity
    

     
    
19. Of those who responded, what is the age background of applicants by percentage and by number?

    0 %/ 0 respondants are 17 and under
    0 %/ 0 respondants are 18 - 25
    4.8% / 2 respondants are 26 - 39
    21.4% / 9 respondants are 40 - 59
    2.4% / 1 respondants are 60 and above
    the rest did not answer
    

     
    

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