Learning from hunter education volunteers’ experiences

Abstract

ABSTRACT Hunter education (HE) is offered in all 50 states, with oversight provided by state wildlife agencies (SWAs). The vast majority of HE courses are taught by volunteers. Recruiting and retaining volunteers to meet the demand for HE courses are growing concerns among SWAs. Insufficient information exists about volunteer instructors’ motivations, experiences, and satisfactions – all of which may affect recruitment and retention. Using the volunteer process model as the theoretical framework for a mixed-methods study, 38 semi-structured telephone interviews were conducted with current and former instructors in New York, followed by a mail survey administered to active instructors (n = 2,126). Findings indicated that volunteers are motivated to teach HE to sustain the tradition of hunting and create safe hunters. Those motivations, coupled with positive experiences teaching in teams, corresponded with instructor recruitment and long-term retention. Unclear roles, limited programmatic influence, and strained relationships were negatively associated with volunteer retention.