Abstract
A study to determine what job responsibilities Extension 4-H youth development professionals (n=241) chose to spend their work time doing and how the workload related to their job satisfaction and burnout is discussed in this paper. Workload was determined using the 4-H Professional, Research, Knowledge, and Competencies (4-H PRKC). Professionals identified their level of job satisfaction and burnout. Based on the previous research on workload, burnout, and job satisfaction, 4-H youth development professionals are prime candidates for experiencing low job satisfaction and increased burnout, which may lead to professionals leaving the organization early. 4-H youth development professionals reported being satisfied with their job and felt very little burnout. Even with the positive job satisfaction and low burnout, there are strategies shared for each of the 4-H PRKC domains to help 4-H professionals continue to have a high level of job satisfaction and low burnout. Many of the strategies that are shared in this paper are applicable to not only 4-H youth development professionals but to any professional who works in the field of youth development.
Highlights
Research and teaching are the missions of most of America’s public colleges and universities, but for more than 100 land-grant colleges and universities, there is the third mission of outreach or Extension (U.S Department of Agriculture [USDA], 2010)
Astroth (2007) found that 58% of the state 4-H program leaders reported the number of state staff FTEs funded with appropriated dollars had decreased since 1990 while 28% of the states reported that their state staff FTEs had increased
Workload 4-H youth development professionals were asked to rank a set of job responsibilities that were related to the 4-H Professional, Research, Knowledge, and Competency (4-H PRKC) model which was designed to provide a framework for quality youth development
Summary
The size of the farms will become smaller, both in size and number of crops grown. These changes with traditional agriculture will affect the Extension system in several ways. Astroth (2007) found that 58% of the state 4-H program leaders reported the number of state staff FTEs funded with appropriated dollars had decreased since 1990 while 28% of the states reported that their state staff FTEs had increased. Forty-eight percent of the states reported a decrease in the number of FTEs working with county 4-H programming, and 28% had seen an increase in 4-H FTEs since 1990. The percentage of states that reported a decrease increased to 54% when the total number of people was counted, rather than the number of FTEs
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
