Industrial and Organizational Psychology Commons^™

"So, Who's In Charge?!": Managing Differences In Perceived Leaders Among Volunteers, Sanaa Ahmed, Sheridan Trent, Acacia Hoffman

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

Volunteers contribute greatly to the success of many organizations in the nation; this is especially true for nonprofit organizations that often find themselves stretched thin financially. Interestingly, although the importance of volunteers is generally acknowledged, there is little research investigating volunteers' perceptions of their leaders. When it comes to volunteers, expectations for leadership may be different than for employees. To address this gap in the literature, we take a step back and seek to understand the underlying nature of leadership for volunteers in nonprofit organizations. Studies have often bypassed the usefulness of qualitative research in examining new phenomenon. In an …