Exploring Volunteer Motivation, Identity and Meaning-Making in Digital Science-Based Research Volunteering

• Published in: International journal of human-computer interaction Vol. 39; no. 20; pp. 4090 - 4111
• Main Authors: Naqshbandi, Khushnood Z., Jeon, Yun-Hee, Ahmadpour, Naseem
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Norwood Taylor & Francis 14.12.2023; Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc
• Subjects: Medical research; Motivation
• ISSN: 1044-7318; 1532-7590; 1044-7318
• DOI: 10.1080/10447318.2022.2109246

Volunteer motivation has been researched in HCI in several application domains. However, motivational complexities of digital volunteerism in science-based domains, such as medical research are under-explored, especially when involving volunteers with marginalized identities. We aim to study the socio-technical complexities of voluntary participation in a digital science-based research platform and propose recommendations to enhance volunteer motivation. We describe a survey study of volunteers on Step-Up for Dementia Research platform (n = 266) to capture nuances in their demographics, experiences, motivations, well-being, and psychological needs. Our findings reveal the features that facilitate or impede sustainable volunteer participation and the 5 identities based on which volunteers derive meaning from their work. We propose 8 recommendations to navigate the digital divide and foster inclusion, build wider participation by engaging with the social construction of volunteering and focusing on prosocial values, and enhance volunteer well-being by fulfilling their cognitive, emotional, and psychological needs.