Factors Affecting the Burn-Out of Sports Boards Volunteers in Kermanshah Province

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1 Factors Affecting the Burn-Out of Sports Boards Volunteers in Kermanshah Province Mona Farzadfar 1,Farideh Ashraf Ganjooyi 2,Hamid Sajjadi Hezaveh 3 Abstract Today, one of the important objectives of sports management in the field of human resources is attracting, organizing, and retaining volunteers. The current research aimed to introduce the factors affecting the burnout of the volunteer forces in sport boards of Kermanshah province. Hence, 125 volunteers of these boards have been randomly selected and responded to two standard questionnaires. The data were analyzed using Cholmogrov-Smirnov test, t test, and Friedman test. The findings showed that reduced individual success is the only factor affecting the burnout of research population. Also, the findings showed that the factors such as emotional fatigue, depersonalization, and involvement in performance did not affect the burnout of volunteers in sport boards of Kermanshah province. Keywords: Burnout, Volunteers, Sport Boards of Kermanshah Province 1. Introduction As one of the key components of providing services in sports organizations, volunteers play an important role in the success of many great races and sporting events (Cleave & Doherty,2005). Considering the development of volunteer workforce in various areas, the evaluation of existing information in the area of voluntary activity is necessary. The research suggests that the significant 1 Department of Sport Management, College of Physical Education and Sport Sciences, Central Tehran Branch,Islamic Azad University,Tehran, Iran 2 Department of Sport Management, College of Physical Education and Sport Sciences, Central Tehran Branch,Islamic Azad University,Tehran, Iran. Ganjooie@iauctb.ac.ir 3 Department of Sport Management, College of Physical Education and Sport Sciences, Central Tehran Branch,Islamic Azad University,Tehran, Iran 62

2 and growing reduction of the volunteers in some countries- especially in the sports and entertainment that the main activities are undertaken by volunteers- is the main concern of directors in these sectors (Auld & Godbey,,1998 ; Auld,2004). In two separate studies, Noble (2000) and Noble&Rogers (1998) introduced the following factors as the barriers to volunteering in the non-sporting organizations: not to pay the costs, lack of adequate support, lack of supervision, lack of education, problems related to transportation, conflicts between volunteers and paid staff, and the uncertainty about insurance coverage (Noble,2000 ; Russell,2007 ). According to Maslac and Schaufell, burn-out is actually said to be the experience of physical, emotional, and mental exhaustion with constant stress (Maslach, Schaufell, & Leifer,2001). Although, according to the definition of volunteerism, these activities found to be voluntary, but they also have their own stress (Cohen, Vigoda,& Samorly, 2001). In fact, stress at work may cause burn-out in individuals (Maslach, Schaufell, & Leifer,2001). According to some research results such as Sari,H (2004), the burn-out dimensions of the two male and female are different (Strigas & Jackson,2003). Also in the Hardy and Carlo(2005)research, the mental exhaustion of male volunteers was less than the girls; and the depersonalization of boys were more than the girls (Hardy & Carlo,2005). In addition to job burnout, athletes themselves are also likely to suffer from burn-out. In the research of Brenner (2007), this phenomenon was investigated and observed in adolescent athletes. The results showed that the overtraining can sometimes lead to the burn-out of adolescent athletes. The family pressure to compete and be successful is other factor affecting the burn-out (Brenner,2007). In his dissertation in psychology at the University of California, Anita louise boling (2005) concluded that volunteering helps to reduce the stress of lifetime. Individuals have a unique motivation for being volunteers in particular age groups (Boling, 2005). In the study "Youth volunteers and their patterns of motivation, Marta.E,Gugliemetti.C,Pozzim (2006) examined the values, social, career, and support factors (Marta, Guglielmetti & Pozzi, 2006). The present research studies the factors affecting the burnout of the volunteer forces in sport boards of Kermanshah province from the perspective of board officials. As the specific objectives, this study also investigated the factors such as emotional fatigue, depersonalization, and 63

3 involvement in performance as the factors affecting the burnout of the volunteer forces in sport boards of Kermanshah province from the perspective of board officials. 2. Methodology The present study is an applied-descriptive and non-experimental survey. 2.1 Population and Sample According to the objective of this study, population consisted of sports board officials including president, vice president, and secretariat. The number of individuals in the 43 sports board were 129.Due to the unavailability of 3 teachers and 1 vice president, 125 cases were studied. 2.2 Data Collection Tools The documents were investigated to obtain general information about the forces, the number of personnel, their education status, and standards. Also, the books, journals, theses, and scientific reports have been used for providing theoretical framework and indicators. The data were collected using burn-out questionnaire -derived from Maslach questionnaire (2001) containing 25 questions and 4 dimensions. The validity was determined by testing the experts, consulting with the faculty supervisors and consultants, as well as using the views of experts in the field of identifying the factors affecting the burn-out of volunteers and finally, the necessary modifications were affected. A pilot study was conducted for assessing the reliability. Therefore, a prototype was consisted of 35 questions were pretested by the studied population. In this study, Cronbach's alpha was used to determine the reliability of the test. The reliability coefficient of burn-out factors is estimated to be greater than 0.7. This suggests that the questionnaire is stable in the study population. The five option Likert scale was used to answer the questionnaire. 2.3 Methods Of Data Analysis The descriptive and inferential statistics were used for data analysis. First, the central and dispersion parameters have been used for descriptive analysis of the findings. In the second part, the inferential statistics was used including KS test, T - Student test (one-sample mean comparison test), and Friedman's ranking test. 64

4 4. Results 4.1 Demographic Profile According to the results, 16.8% of the subjects were female and 83.2% of them were male; and, 50.4 percent and 8 percent had a bachelor's degree and a master's degree and higher, respectively. Most of them were aged between 35 to 45 years (36%). The maximum duration of service ranged from 5 to 10 years (32 percent). 68% of the respondents were married and 32% were single. From the study components, the depersonalization factor had the lowest average (2.01). The highest middle belonged to the reduced individual success (62.3); and the lowest middle related to the emotional exhaustion and depersonalization. The emotional exhaustion with a standard deviation of has the highest standard deviation. 4.2 KS test According to the significance level of Kolmogorov - Smirnov test, it can be said that the significance level of all components is greater than Therefore, the assumption of normality of the observations in Type I error level 0.05 is accepted. Variable Emotional exhaustion reduced individual success depersonalization conflict t df sig Mean Difference / Table 1: Results Of T-Test To Examine The Factors Affecting Burn-Out Given the significance levels obtained from Table 1, it can be seen that the assumption of equal average for all subjects is rejected in the Type I error level This means that their impact on burn-out have not been at an average level. Given that the mean difference of the three factors (emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and conflict) has been negative, the impact of these factors on burn-out has been lower than average. As a result- from the perspective of board officials- these three factors do not affect the burn-out of volunteers in the studied population. 65

5 Only the reduced individual success with positive mean difference is considered an affective factor in the burn-out of volunteers in sports boards of Kermanshah- from the perspective of the board officials. 5. Friedman Test Variable Rank Mean rank Emotional exhaustion reduced individual success depersonalizati on conflict Statistic: Sig: Table 2: Results Of Friedman Ranking Test For Burn-Out Factors According to Table 2 and the significance of the test, it can be said that the reduced individual success has the greatest impact on the burnout of volunteers in research population. Thus, this component is the first factor affecting the burn-out of volunteers. Then, the conflict, emotional exhaustion, and depersonalization are prioritized, respectively. 6. Discussion And Conclusion According to the results of one sample Student t-test in Table 2, it can be seen that the reduced individual success is the only factor affecting the burn-out in research population. The one-sample student t-test results in Table 1 indicated that the impact of emotional exhaustion on burn-out has not been moderate. But, the negative mean difference show that this factor has no significant impact on burn-out of volunteers. Therefore, the emotional exhaustion is not one of the factors affecting the burn-out of sports boards volunteers in the province of Kermanshah. The one-sample student t-test results in Table 1 showed that the impact of reduced individual success on the burn-out of volunteers has not been moderate. The positive mean difference shows that this factor has had significant impact on volunteers burn-out. Therefore, the reduced 66

6 individual success is one of the factors affecting the burn-out of sports boards volunteers in the province of Kermanshah. Gillepsie &King (1985) introduced the individual success as a motivational factor. Therefore, the reduced individual success can be considered as one of the factors affecting the burn-out of volunteers (Gillepsie, King,1985), which is consistent with the results obtained in this study. The one sample student t-test results in Table 1 indicated that the impact of depersonalization on burn-out of sports boards volunteers has not been moderate. But, the negative mean difference show that this factor has no significant impact on burn-out of volunteers. Therefore, the depersonalization is not one of the factors affecting the burn-out of sports boards volunteers in the province of Kermanshah. The one sample student t-test results in Table 1 indicated that the impact of involvement in performance on burn-out has not been moderate. But, the negative mean difference show that this factor has no significant impact on burn-out of volunteers. Therefore, the involvement in performance is not one of the factors affecting the burn-out of sports boards volunteers in the province of Kermanshah. Russell Hoye considered the involvement in performance as a factor affecting the burn-out (Sari,2004); this is not consistent with the results obtained in this study. According to studies conducted at the research process and the results of the statistical analysis of research data, the following suggestions are offered: A safe and peaceful environment is effective in reducing stress and tension of volunteers. Supervisors must actively strive to create a friendly atmosphere among the volunteers. It is better that volunteers participate in Sport Board meetings and in all matters affecting them. Introduce the organization, its people, and its aims. Identify the volunteers and their activities and reward them. 7. Suggestions For Future Research 1 - It is recommended that the qualitative research methods be used for identifying the factors affecting the burn-out of sports boards volunteers. 67

7 2 - Other components that may affect the burn-out of sports boards volunteers should be identified and the role and impact of these variables should be examined. 3 It is recommended that other researches be conducted in other sports boards; and, the results be compared with the results obtained in this study. References Auld, C.J. and Godbey, G. (1998). Influence in Canadian national sport organizations : Perceptions of professionals and volunteers. The Journal of Sport Management, 12(1) : PP: Auld, C.(2004). Behavioral Characteristics of student volunteers. Boling, A. L.(2005). Volunteer motivation across the lifespan. A dissertation submitted to the faculty of Claremont graduate university in pivotal fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of philosophy in psychology. Claremont. California. Brenner. Joel. S. (2007). Overuse injuries, overtraining, and burnout in child and adolescent athletes. Pediatrics. Evanston: Vol ISS. 6; P:1242.ustralian Journal on Volunteering, 9(2) : PP:8-18. Cohen, A., Vigoda, E.& Samorly, A. (2001). Analysis of the mediating Effect of personal psychological variables on the relationship between socioeconomic status and political participation : A Structural Equations Framework, political Psychology, 22 : PP: Cleave, S. and Doherty, A. (2005). Understanding volunteer and nonvolunteer constraints : a mixed-method approach. Eleventh Canadian Congress on Leisure Research. May Gillepsie. D.F. and King, A.E.O. (1985). "Demographic understanding of volunteerism". Journal of society and social welfare, 12(4): PP: Hardy, S.A., & Carlo. G. (2005). Religiosity and prosocial behaviors in adolescence : The mediating role of prosocial values. Journal of Moral Education, 34, PP: Marta, E, Guglielmetti. C. Pozzi. M. (2006). Volunteerism During Young Adulthood : An Italian Investigation into Motivational Patterns. JOURNAL Voluntas. Vol. 17; PP: Maslach, C., Schaufell, N.B., & Leifer, M. P. (2001). Job burnout. Annual Review of psychology, 52, PP: Noble, J. (2000). The future of volunteering. In J. Warburton and M. Oppenheimer, Eds, Volunteers and volunteering, Federation Press, Sydney, PP: Russell Hoye (2007). Commitment, Involvement and performance of Voluntary Sport Organization Board Members. European Sport Management Quarterly, Volume 7, Issue 1, PP:

8 Sari, H. (2004). An analysis of burnout and job satisfaction among Turkish special school head teachers and the factors affecting their burnout and job satisfaction. Educational Studies, 30, PP: Strigas, A.D. & E.N. Jackson (2003). Motivating Volunteers to Serve and Succeed: Design and Results of a Pilot Study that Explores Demographics and Motivational Factors in Sport Volunteerism. International Sports Journal. Winter. 7 (7):

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