Arab Educational Information Network

The objectives of this study were to investigate the role of educational institutions and family upbringing on ingraining the culture of volunteer work among university students. A random sample of 1450 students of both genders was interviewed individually via an oral questionnaire. The investigation revealed that 62% of students participated in volunteer work, of which 32% participated consistently while the rest participated occasionally. 41% of consistent participants were males versus 59% females. Consistent participants active for 5 years or more were only 10.5% (2.1% females, 8.4% males). This highlights the weak trends towards volunteer work among students. Results indicate that schools had the highest impact on students (54%), followed by the university (22%), then family (21%). The impact of schools was higher on females than males, while the impact of family and university was higher on males. A number of recommendations were drawn to promote volunteer work among university students. (Published abstract)