Youth Participation in Environmental Volunteerism and its Role in Sustainable Development
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.21834/e-bpj.v10i33.7180Keywords:
Youth Volunteerism, Malaysian Youth Index (MYI, Motivational Factors, Economic ValuationAbstract
This study investigates the motivations behind Malaysian youth participation in environmental volunteerism and evaluates its economic value. Using survey data from 180 volunteers across urban and rural areas, five motivational domains were assessed: ecological concern, environmental values, career development, social responsibility, and personal growth. Structural equation modeling (Smart PLS) identified ecological concern, environmental values, and career development as significant predictors of youth volunteerism. Ecological and environmental factors were most influential, while social responsibility and personal growth were not. These findings highlight the civic and economic value of youth engagement, supporting integration into national youth development policies.
References
Bandura, A. (1986). Social foundations of thought and action: A social cognitive theory. Prentice-Hall
British Psychological Society (BPS). (2021). Code of Human Research Ethics (3rd ed.). https://www.bps.org.uk
Clary, E. G., Snyder, M., Ridge, R. D., Copeland, J., Stukas, A. A., Haugen, J., & Miene, P. (1998). Understanding and assessing the motivations of volunteers: A functional approach. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 74(6), 1516–1530. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.74.6.1516
Gökçe, S., & Özdemir, G. (2020). Ecological awareness and its impact on environmental volunteerism among youth. Sustainability, 12(5), 1569. https://doi.org/10.3390/su12051569
Hair, J. F., Hult, G. T. M., Ringle, C. M., & Sarstedt, M. (2017). A primer on partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) (2nd ed.). SAGE Publications
Hair, J. F., Sarstedt, M., Ringle, C. M., & Gudergan, S. P. (2019). Advanced issues in partial least squares structural equation modeling. SAGE Publications
Kaur, J., & Ahmad, N. (2022). Volunteering and career development: The role of volunteer work in improving youth employability. International Journal of Voluntary and Nonprofit Organizations, 33(4), 907-923. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11266-021-00393-x
Lee, H., & Choi, M. (2021). The role of environmental values in fostering youth volunteerism for ecological sustainability. Environmental Education Research, 27(1), 45-60. https://doi.org/10.1080/13504622.2020.1763814
Martinez, A., & Manes, R. (2021). The environmental values and behaviors of youth: An examination of volunteering motivations. Environmental Sociology, 7(2), 123-138. https://doi.org/10.1080/23251042.2021.1873141
Palinkas, L. A., Horwitz, S. M., Green, C. A., Wisdom, J. P., Duan, N., & Hoagwood, K. (2015). Purposeful sampling for qualitative data collection and analysis in mixed method implementation research. Administration and Policy in Mental Health and Mental Health Services Research, 42(5), 533–544. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10488-013-0528-y
Putnam, R. D. (2020). Social capital and environmental volunteerism: A focus on youth engagement in community-based sustainability programs. Voluntas: International Journal of Voluntary and Nonprofit Organizations, 31(4), 833-850. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11266-020-00228-1
Sarstedt, M., Ringle, C. M., & Hair, J. F. (2022). Partial least squares structural equation modeling. In Homburg, C., Klarmann, M., & Vomberg, A. (Eds.), Handbook of Market Research (pp. 1–47). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-05542-8_15-2
Shahril, M., & Ismail, A. (2021). Youth social responsibility and their involvement in environmental volunteerism: A Malaysian perspective. Asian Journal of Environmental Studies, 10(1), 23-40. https://doi.org/10.1111/ajes.20501
Shye, S. (2010). The motivation to volunteer: A systemic quality of life theory. Social Indicators Research, 98, 183–200. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11205-009-9545-3
Taniguchi, H. (2022). Social responsibility and youth participation in environmental volunteerism: A comparative analysis of rural and urban areas. Sociology of Youth, 19(2), 121-135. https://doi.org/10.1080/14449220.2022.1825346
Wang, S., Liu, Y., & Xu, J. (2020). Ecological concerns and their influence on environmental volunteering among young people: Evidence from China. Environmental Conservation, 47(3), 235-245. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0376892920000232
Wilson, J. (2020). The role of personal growth in youth volunteerism and its implications for environmental sustainability. Journal of Social and Environmental Sustainability, 14(2), 59-75. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jss.2020.11.003.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Norashida Othman, Siti Norida Wahab, Nazura Mohamed Sayuti, Muhammad Luthfi Mohaini, Safwan Kamal, Shahhanim Yahya

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.