Due to the increase in the aged population and long duration of senescence, it is coming to the fore as an important issue how to spend the senescence in an active manner and also how to make use of a lot of free time for individual satisfaction and s...
Due to the increase in the aged population and long duration of senescence, it is coming to the fore as an important issue how to spend the senescence in an active manner and also how to make use of a lot of free time for individual satisfaction and social contributions.
What is the most importantly perceived in improving an aged person's life quality equipped with a satisfactory old-age living and successful aging could be an old man's psychological well-being and involvement in social activity.
Among the concepts reflecting the state of an old man's psychological well-being, the function that plays the most vital role in maintaining a positive living is no other than a sense of self-efficacy.
This research aims at suggesting the revitalization scheme of the aged people's volunteer work that could promote the life quality during senescence by taking a look at the relation between the volunteer work of an aged volunteer worker involved in volunteer work and a sense of self-efficacy as well as the relations by subordinate factor and by inquiring into an involvement plan to form a positive sense of self-efficacy in her/his volunteer work by clarifying what effect of an aged person's volunteer work has on self-efficacy and affecting factors.
For this purpose, this research measured self-efficacy by setting sociology-of-population-based characteristic of an age-old volunteer worker and the characteristic of volunteer work as a variable.
This research survey was conducted using questionnaires targeting the aged bracket above full age of 60 living in Seoul district who are involved in volunteer work from April until mid-May, 2008; the collected data was statistically processed using SPSS 15.0.
The research results are outlined as follows:
First, this research took a look at the sociology-of-population-based factor and an old person's volunteer work factor in an old person's volunteer work's effect on self-efficacy and also looked into whether those factor had an effect on the subordinate sector of self-efficacy by factor.
Then let me explain the relation between the sociology-of-population-based characteristic and self-efficacy as follows:
In sociology-of-population-based characteristics, there appeared no significant statistical difference in sex distinction, age, educational level, marital status, and economic level, nor did a significant difference even in time of looking into the characteristics by subordinate factor; however, there appeared a statically significant difference in self-efficacy subsequent to family relationship and health state. The better an old person's relationship with his/her family, the more significant difference in subordinate sector- general self-efficacy; as for self-efficacy as against the state of health, the better state of health one had, there appeared a significant difference in both physical self-efficacy and general self-efficacy.
The relation between volunteer work characteristics and self-efficacy is as follows:
Among the characteristics of volunteer work, the motive of volunteering , volunteering service period, average volunteering hours, volunteering field, family members' response to volunteering, aggressiveness in volunteering, awareness level of the necessity of a gathering for volunteering, satisfaction with volunteering, whether or not he/she was persuaded into volunteering, compensation for volunteering, relationship with his/her co-volunteer, whether or not he/she exchanges time besides volunteering, and suitability of volunteering were found to have a significant effect on self-efficacy and also on the subordinate sector of self-efficacy.
Second, as a result of conducting a regression analysis of the influential factors of volunteering on the level of self-efficacy, in sociology-of-population-based characteristics, the better a volunteer's relationship with his/her family and the better an old volunteer's state of health, the higher the old volunteer's self-efficacy appeared.
In addition, as a result of looking into the difference in influential power of the sociology-of-population-based characteristics and volunteering characteristics on self-efficacy, it was found that the lower the age of an old person and the better his/her state of health and the more suitable his/her volunteering as well as the more compensation for one's volunteering, the more influential on an old person's self-efficacy.
Next, as a result of conducting a regression analysis of influential factors of an old person's volunteering on the level self-efficacy by subordinate sector, there appeared no significant result in social self-efficacy, but as for physical self-efficacy, the better the health, the more fit the volunteer work with an old volunteer's ability and aptitude, and the more compensation for volunteering, there appeared higher physical self-efficacy in volunteering ; as for general self-efficacy, it was found that the lower the age and the more fit the volunteer work into an old volunteer's ability and aptitude, the higher se;f-efficacy.
On the basis of the identified results from this research, the connoted social welfare-based meaning for revitalization of an old person's volunteering is as follows:
First, as for an old person's volunteering, it is necessary that volunteering work should be suited for an aged person's physical, psychological characteristics and should be a sort of work an aged volunteer can do with interest; in short, it is imperative to develop a program in which an aged prospective volunteer can select his/her favorite field where he/she can fully display his/her experience, knowledge, techniques and ability, etc.
Second, one of the important affecting factors in self-efficacy of the aged people involved in volunteering is the very the state of health. Sound mental strength and maintenance of physical health could be a very important matter not onlty to him/herself but also to the beneficiaries of volunteering work. Therefore, the authorities concerned are required to prepare stereoscopic system and plan for the aged people's keeping health.
Third, it is necessary to look into a substantial plan for formal or informal protection & compensation in relation to the aged person's volunteering ; in addition, it is recommended that compensation should be made to meet the needs followed by individual difference while considering the compensation level the aged generation wants by using a variety of methods of compensation.
Fourth, this research offered basic data on the level of self-efficacy of an aged person subsequent to volunteering and on each level of the three subordinate sectors of self-efficacy; thus, this researcher thinks that follow-up research work should be done to make up for this research.