Need Satisfaction Mechanism Linking Volunteer Motivation and Life Satisfaction: A Mediation Study of Volunteers Subjective Well-Being

A mediation model explaining volunteers' subjective well-being was tested in this paper. It examined the effect of intrinsic motivation on volunteers' life satisfaction, using the need satisfaction experienced through volunteering as an intervening variable. A questionnaire was administered to 443 participants, not all of whom had previous experience of volunteering. Mediation analysis suggested a path from intrinsic motivation to volunteers' life satisfaction through the need satisfaction experienced during volunteering. Neither volunteer participation per se nor extrinsic motivation was related to life satisfaction. The roles of motivation and need satisfaction in volunteers' life satisfaction were identified, with implications for future volunteer programs. © 2012 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht.