Abstract:

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, all volunteering issues have elevated to a higher level, cite one example: the percentage of people in our society involved in volunteering has grown significantly. However, it is worth noting that the fundamental difference between volunteering in general and the one associated with the pandemic makes the latter one depended on its limited time-period. When it comes to long-term projects, we are dealing with the matter of the volunteers’ evaluation in terms of predicting their success in this sort of activity, estimating their ability to participate in long-term projects, together with taking into account the young age of some volunteers joining the project as well as the possible risk of change of circumstances in volunteers’ life. Based on the analysis presented by recent research in the field of psychology of volunteerism along with the project's domain expertise during the 7-year period, we have elaborated a prospective model of the personality of a volunteer, which is to determine his/her successful participation in long-term projects that are to support orphaned children and teenagers.

The study group consisted of 100 volunteers who worked with children at first hand: (11 men and 89 women), average age 29 years ± 6 years. The control group consisted of students and working people whose professional occupations had no relation to the project field and who had no previous volunteering experience: 68 people (18 men and 50 women), average age 29 ± 4.3 years. All participants in this study were invited to take part in an on-line test that matched such scientific approaches and methods as:
1. Sh. Schwartz's Questionnaire based on Refined Theory of Basic Personal Values.
2. Langle-Orgler Existence Scale.
3. Alexithymia Scale.
4. Big Five personality traits (five-factor model FFM).
5. Balanced Emotional Empathy Scale (by Dr. M. Yusupov).

Experts that supervised volunteers and their activity within the framework of the project estimated the volunteers’ performance according to the proprietary methodology known as the ‘Scale of volunteer’s efficiency and success’. All data were processed with the use of such application programs as MS Excel, SPSS Statistics 20.

As a result of the data analysis, there were the most important personal indicators for an efficient volunteer determined: empathy, work ethics, the high level of the liberty of choice ensures the equally high level of the volunteers’ self-actualization and efficiency; the core values for an efficient volunteer are as following: multitasking ability, high reputational standards, generosity, caregiving behavior and the disregard for supremacy and domination. As a result of the combined factor analysis there were four trait profiles for the volunteers participating in the project identified: a successful volunteer, a self-motivated volunteer, an independent volunteer, a newcomer.

Keywords:

Orphaned teenagers, volunteer, personality of volunteer, values.