Student Participation in Community Service and Environmental Action

Youth participation in voluntary community service is widespread in most developed countries. Given extensive youth engagement in community service in the USA and benefits associated with it, the book examined how selected student variables influenced student involvement in community service and environmental action. The conceptual framework for the book was based on Dewey''s theory of community, socialization theory, social capital theory, social exchange theory, Adlerian theory and Hines model. Logistic regression models were used to analyze data obtained from a large dataset. The findings of the book indicated that student performance in social studies, student involvement in extracurricular activities and student intention to finish college were strong positive predictors of student participation in community service. The time a student spent on part-time employment was a negative predictor. The book came up with several recommendations for practitioners and researchers involved in community service practice. Although the book is based on the literature and data from the USA, schools, colleges and volunteer organizations in other countries will also find the book very useful.