Inside national service: AmeriCorps' impact on participants

Abstract

This study examines the short- and long-term impact of AmeriCorps participation on members' civic engagement, education, employment, and life skills. The analysis compares changes in the attitudes and behaviors of participants over time to those of individuals not enrolled in AmeriCorps, controlling for interest in national and community service, member and family demographics, and prior civic engagement. Results indicate that participation in AmeriCorps led to positive impacts on members, especially in the area of civic engagement, members' connection to community, knowledge about problems facing their community, and participation in community-based activities. AmeriCorps had some positive impacts on its members' employment-related outcomes. Few statistically significant impacts were found for measures of participants' attitude toward education or educational attainment, or for selected life skills measures. Within a subset of community service programs that incorporate a residential component for members, the study also uncovered a short-term negative impact of participation on members' appreciation for ethnic and cultural diversity, which disappeared over time. The implications of these findings for future research on national service are discussed. © 2009 by the Association for Public Policy Analysis and Management.

Cultivating Public Service Motivation throughAmeriCorpsService: A Longitudinal Study

“…Similarly, in conducting a synthesis of research addressing the relationship between service and citizenship, Perry and Katula () find that program participation does not necessarily lead to increased measures of civic engagement. However, Frumkin et al () (employing the data set used presently) find that participation in AmeriCorps can improve participants’ levels of civic engagement and connectedness to community.…”

Understanding AmeriCorps Service: Perspectives from Psychological Theory and Research on Volunteerism

“…Although our approach to understanding AmeriCorps service is of relevance to other research on AmeriCorps, we are limited in the direct comparisons that can be made across studies. This is largely because, unlike our focus on studying the experiences of individual AmeriCorps members over the course of their service, much of the past research on AmeriCorps has focused on how national service affects communities or service members (e.g., Perry et al., ; Simon & Wang, ; Thomson & Perry, ), or who is most likely to join in the first place (Corporation for National and Community Service, ; Frumkin et al., ). However, some interesting comparisons can still be made.…”

“…Some research has explored the extent to which AmeriCorps programs positively affect organizations and communities where service takes place, as well as the possibility that service can lead to positive impacts on service members themselves (e.g., Perry, Thomson, Tschirhart, Mesch, & Lee, ; Simon & Wang, ; Thomson & Perry, ), including continued community involvement after service (Simon & Wang, ). Research has also compared those who are engaged in AmeriCorps service to those who are not (Corporation for National and Community Service, ; Frumkin et al., ), revealing that AmeriCorps members are more likely to be civically engaged, more often employed in a service sector after completing their term, and more likely to feel connected to their communities. Though this research has helped elucidate outcomes related to AmeriCorps service, very little of it has drawn upon psychological theory on volunteerism to inform the research and evaluate the findings.…”

Tapping the Americorps Pipeline

“…Propensity score analysis was also used to ensure a sufficiently matched comparison group. Most of the individuals in the comparison group ultimately sought employment in the public and nonprofit sectors (Frumkin et al, 2009). …”