YOUTH LEADERS' INVOLVEMENT IN YOUTH EXECUTIVE COMMITTEES

Abstract

There has always been a call to youths to encourage them to participate involuntary social activities. It is only through community service that our society may become more gracious and not be self-centred or materialistic. However, participation rates, though increasing, are still low compared to other countries. This study explores youth leaders' involvement in a grassroots organisation, the Youth Executive Committee. The focus is on the differential degree of participation of the committee members~ the active ones and the non-active ones. The researcher compares the socio-demographic profiles of the 2 groups and looks at various aspects of their volunteerism, such as socialisation, motivation and satisfaction. It is found that active members tend to have a greater degree of family support, have a close friend or family member who is a volunteer, experience greater satisfaction from their involvement in the YEC, served in the YEC for a longer period of time and hold white-collar jobs than non-active members. According to Maslow's hierarchy of needs, active members are more likely to be motivated by higher-order needs, such as autonomy than non-active members who are motivated by lower-order needs, such as security. Statistical tests show that these findings were significant. The researcher recommends that to increase the level of satisfaction among the members there should be constructive feedback and open communication between the members and the chairpersons and Youth Staff of the community centre. To motivate the members, there should be opportunities for more social interaction among the members and autonomy in carrying out their task.