Exploring Adolescent-Organization Relationships: A Study of Effective Relationship Strategies with Adolescent Volunteers

This article reports on a study of the adolescent volunteer-nonprofit organization relationship. The study identified three key relationship maintenance strategies that influence an adolescent public: guidance, assurances, and shared tasks. In addition, it identified the relationship quality outcome of control mutuality as playing a key role in the adolescent volunteer-nonprofit relationship. Control mutuality was more influenced by maintenance strategies than any other outcome, and it asserted the most influence on other relationship quality outcomes (trust, commitment, and satisfaction). The study also found that the level of quality that teens experienced in their volunteer-organization relationship predicted their intention to volunteer in the future. Implications are discussed.