Motivation of volunteers participating in youth activities: A mixed research on youth centers

Youth Centers affiliated with the Ministry of Youth and Sports, which offers various activities to young people in the fields of education, culture, art, sports, and social responsibility as well as carries out studies to raise awareness of volunteering for young people, play an effective role in carrying out volunteering activities of the youth. This research was carried out with the aim of revealing what affects the motivation of young people who volunteer in Youth Centers affiliated to the Ministry of Youth and Sports and the effect of the advantages and disadvantages of youth centers on the motivation of volunteers. The research was conducted with mixed research method and sequential design. In the quantitative part of the research, which was carried out with the relational survey model, a personal information form and "Volunteer Motivation Inventory" were applied to 537 volunteers who volunteered in youth centres in Ankara, Samsun, İstanbul, Antalya, Şanlıurfa, Konya, Bursa, İzmir, Kocaeli, Adana, Gaziantep and Diyarbakır provinces/districts. The qualitative part of the research involved a study group of 38 young people, and data were collected through in-depth interviews using a semi-structured interview form. The study employed a phenomenological design. In the quantitative part of the research, it was revealed that the increase in the education level of the participants increased volunteer motivation, volunteers decided to volunteer on their initiative, activities that increase their social networks and provide career development increase volunteer motivation, the decrease in volunteering hours increases the volunteer motivation of young volunteers as the hours they devote to volunteering decrease, and age does not affect volunteer motivation. In the qualitative part of the research, it was revealed that young people are attracted to youth centers because they are public institutions, the services and opportunities offered to young people in the youth centers increase the volunteer motivation of volunteers, and the activities that provide moral satisfaction increase the volunteer motivation of young people. Key Words: Volunteering, Youth Centers, Volunteer Motivation