Literature

Review
Literature addressing both eLearning and volunteer engagement was sought and
information specific to the application of these variables to this study is presented below.
The relationships of all these topics to one another is ill defined by existing research, which
represents the disparity this study intends to address.
Computer Based Training

The many facets of eLearning (computer based training [CBT], internet based

training [IBT], web based training [WBT] and similar acronyms), has been well studied in
the literature and shown to be effective (Kulik & Kulik, 1991; Piccoli, Ahmad, & Ives, 2001;
Prensky, 2005; Sitzmann, Kraiger, Stewart, & Wisher, 2006; Strother, 2002; Wantland, Portillo,
Holzemer, Slaughter, & McGhee, 2004). Literature focusing on the use of eLearning for the
purposes of first aid topics (for example, cardiopulmonary resuscitation [CPR]) and studies
that addressed the implementation of eLearning techniques within selected medical and
medically-related environments were sought to appreciate that complexities of this
particular style of training in a virtual environment.
The effectiveness of the use of computer-based training for medical topics in the
development of theoretical and practical skills has been found to be similar to classroom-
based instruction where learners are physically co-located (Lam-Antoniades, Ratnapalan, &
Tait, 2009; Militello, Gance-Cleveland, Aldrich, & Kamal, 2014). The experience of moving to
computer-based training from one where learners are physically co-located is a positive
one, even for learners who have never used computers previously for learning (Walker &
Harrington, 2003). Utilizing web-based training for teaching medical skills to non-medical
staff was found to reduce training time and cost while maintaining the performance of

learners when compared to more cost-intensive instructor led activities (Gellman, 2005)
and web-based simulation training for emergency medical services was likewise found to
reduce training costs while maintaining effectiveness (Gershon et al., 2008). The totality of
this literature proves ample support for medically-themed training to both medical and
non-medical staff in the emergency medical services as a low-cost alternative to situations
where learners are physically co-located.

The use of eLearning for first aid knowledge building is comparable to physically co-

located classroom instruction and case-based learning and is promoted as a suggested

method of delivery to improve first aid cognitive behaviors (Sara, 2008). First aid
instruction itself is a combination of a wide variety of emergency medical topics, designed
to teach learners how to provide emergency help to an injured or suddenly ill person using
readily available materials (St. John Ambulance, 2011, p. 10). In a study comparing both
online and physically co-located instruction of first aid and cardiopulmonary resuscitation
(CPR) to lay rescuers, online students performed better than their traditional counterparts
(Cason & Stiller, 2011). The skills and theory of CPR is particularly well-researched as a
topic of eLearning first aid instruction in medical professionals (Hemmati, Omrani, &
Hemmati, 2013), schoolchildren (Plant & Taylor, 2013), high school students (Teague & Riley,
2006), and seniors (Meischke, Rea, Eisenberg, Schaeffer, & Kudenchuk, 2001), all which find
positive results for the resulting knowledge from the eLearning implementation of training
when compared to physically co-located instruction. There is, however, some dissent about
the resulting physical skills required to perform the tasks of first aid and CPR when
computer-based and physically co-located students are brought together for skills testing.
While some authors note no difference in performance between eLearning and traditional

learning (Cason & Stiller, 2011; Meischke et al., 2001; Plant & Taylor, 2013; Teague & Riley,
2006), others cite weaker skill performance by eLearning students and recommend a
blended approach to learning to enhance skill development (Rehberg, Diaz, & Middlemas,
2009; Sara, 2008).
Volunteer Engagement
The dependent variable in this study of volunteer engagement is often ill-defined
and thus suffers from a much smaller basis of literature from which to draw experience and
conclusions. Within the volunteer sector, studies that considered volunteer engagement,
satisfaction, and the effect of emergency services work in a volunteer context were
considered and general articles on engagement and how to measure engagement in a
workplace setting were collected.
There has been much research into what motivates people to volunteer, with a
number of factors and models being identified; more than 40 items are included in the
Volunteer Motivation Inventory (Esmond & Dunlop, 2004) alone. Understanding motivation
aids organizations in tailoring their experiences to the individuals they recruit. Beyond
motivation, however, research has also been undertaken in the fields of volunteer
satisfaction and commitment to better assist in retaining volunteers (Vecina, Chacn,
Sueiro, & Barrn, 2012). These concepts: motivation, satisfaction, and commitment often
focus on the relationship of volunteer to the organization but struggle to adequately explain
the relationship of the volunteer to the work being performed. It could be suggested that
historically volunteer research was focused on the outcomes for the volunteer, whereas
workplace research was often focused on the organizational concepts that led to the
outcomes (Vecina & Chacn, 2013a).

Workplace engagement is defined as a positive, fulfilling work-related state of mind

that is characterized by vigor, dedication, and absorption (Schaufeli, Bakker, & Salanova,
2006, p. 702). Engagement is juxtaposed to the concept of burnout, although elements of
both concepts may be present in the individual (Choi, 2013). This contrast is particularly
important in volunteer experiences involving emergency services, where high demands on
volunteers can lead to burnout as manifested by exhaustion (Huynh, Xanthopoulou, &
Winefield, 2014). Given the scarcity of literature that is focused solely on a definition of
engagement as it relates to volunteers, many researchers simply attempt to adapt the
concept of work engagement to volunteer engagement. At its core, volunteer work is still
work and while volunteers may not perform tasks for monetary reward, volunteerism is
highly beneficial physically and psychologically, and its effect on health and well-being
seems strong and consistent (Vecina & Chacn, 2013b, p. 870). A number of studies have
considered the concept of work engagement within a volunteer context and found it to be
applicable across both domains (Fera & Shaw, 2013; Schie, Gntert, Oostlander, & Wehner,
2014; Vecina, Chacn, Marzana, & Marta, 2013; Vecina et al., 2012). Volunteer engagement is
needed to offset the tendency of volunteers, who give their time to organizations they
support, to decrease their involvement within that organization once they feel pressured to
contribute (Schie et al., 2014). In a cyclical description of the relationship between
volunteer motivation, engagement and retention, the theory of self-determined motivation
enhances work engagement and increases the volunteers intent to remain (Schie et al.,
2014, p. 17). Establishing workplace engagement and volunteer engagement as similar
concepts allows us to utilize tools for measuring engagement in both domains while
adjusting for the different outcomes associated with workplace and volunteer engagement.

The most popular standardized validated test for measuring workplace engagement
is the Utrecht Workplace Engagement Survey (UWES) (Attridge, 2009). It is a particularly
robust and well-studied tool which seeks to measure worker engagement as a result of a
15-variable Likert scale assessment (Schaufeli & Bakker, 2004). Beyond workplace
engagement, it has proven applicable to contexts measuring student engagement (Schaufeli
& Bakker, 2004) and volunteer engagement (Fera & Shaw, 2013; Schie et al., 2014; Vecina et
al., 2013, 2012) by modifying question phrases to reflect the context in which it is assessing.
A shortened 9 question version of the UWES was found to have similar psychomotor
predictability as compared to the full survey (Schaufeli et al., 2006; Seppl et al., 2009). In
measuring workplace engagement, it has been found that increased workplace engagement
was a predictor of positive workplace well-being (Seppl et al., 2009) and is independently
predictive of evaluating engagement even in the presence of burnout (Choi, 2013). The
survey separately assesses three key areas of engagement: vigor, dedication and absorption.
Theoretical Framework
The independent variable within this study is the implementation of an eLearning
platform to complement a training program that is currently being administered solely
through co-located instructional methods. The dependent variable is the concept of
volunteer engagement, as measured by the Utrecht Workplace Engagement Survey. These
two variables are considerably different and each has a unique set of characteristics from
which to consider their impact on research. To complement an analysis of the volunteers
reaction to the adoption of the platform, self-determined motivation, as a sub-type of self-
determination theory can be used to bridge the idea of workplace engagement with that of
volunteer engagement (Deci & Ryan, 1991; Ryan & Deci, 2000).

Rogers Diffusion of Innovations

Rogers framework seeks to address the process by which an innovation is
communicated through certain channels among the members of a social system (Rogers,
1982, p. 5). In this study, the innovation is the eLearning platform being introduced to a
group of volunteers (the social system). The communication of this platform through
existing channels within that organization remain fairly static to existing organizational
practice and have been maintained in similar fashion for the communication of the survey
to the volunteer participants. The Diffusion of Innovations framework seeks to define the
following characteristics of the innovation being studied (in this case, the implementation
of the eLearning platform): relative advantage, compatibility, complexity, trainability, and
observability (Rogers, 1982). The relative advantage of the eLearning platform is based on
the literature supporting eLearning in a first aid environment. It has been introduced to
complement physically co-located instructional methods. It is compatible with learners
both familiar with eLearning and those who have yet to have been introduced to it. The
platform itself was designed to be as user-friendly as possible, reducing its complexity, but
it was also chosen to support other organizational needs, in addition to its primary learning
purpose. The learning modules themselves were created by volunteer training staff who
are currently tasked with the weekly instructional delivery of first aid topics; these
volunteer instructors are all subject matter experts and hold current certification and
employment as paramedics. The initiation of the eLearning platform can be considered a
trial period as it does not actually replace any training currently being administered.
Failure to adopt the platform on a long-term basis would not negatively affect the
organization. The modified Utrecht Workplace Engagement Survey will be employed to test

the observability of this innovation, in the context of whether it has an effect on volunteer
engagement. It is recognized that the medical first response volunteers of St. John
Ambulance Cambridge have an existing social structure which is formally established; a
paramilitary rank structure with officers, non-commissioned members, and both medical
first response and first aid trained volunteers comprising the volunteer membership exists.
The instructors for the weekly training sessions of the volunteer membership do not
necessarily hold formal leadership positions (although some do) but all are certified and
work as paramedics, creating a position of opinion leadership inherent to their more
advanced professional qualifications in relation to the learners.
Volunteer engagement itself cannot be adequately explained using the Diffusion of
Innovations Model. By using an occupational workplace engagement survey to measure
engagement, there is a risk of confusing the motivation behind the work being performed.
While engagement does represent the proposed observable change created by the
eLearning platform, it is a complex concept. Self-Determination Theory (Deci & Ryan, 1991;
Ryan & Deci, 2000) focuses on the motives behind why individuals follow certain courses of
action and is appropriate for application for workplace contexts. As a subset of self-
determination theory, self-determined motivation is defined as acting with a sense of
volition and have the experience of choice (Gagn & Deci, 2005). Research by van Shie et.
al. (2014) further explored the idea of self-determined motivation to elaborate on the
quality of the volunteer experience and also adapted the UWES for use as a tool to evaluate
volunteer engagement resulting from that self-determined motivation. This recognizes the
motivation volunteers bring to the motivation they have to engage in their volunteer work.
As a dimension of engagement, dedication can be best attributed to being a result of self-

motivation theory; volunteers have freely chosen to give their work and effort to an
organization.
The individual elements of the proposed study would, at first glance, appear to
support a hypothesis that implementing an eLearning platform in a volunteer context will
have a positive effect on engagement. However, on further review of the literature, there is
also the possibility for a number of factors to influence this process and a minority of
dissenting opinions as to the effectiveness of eLearning in a first aid environment. The idea
of workplace engagement is well-defined but transferring that idea to the volunteer
experience does not offer a similar cache of literature to support it. By using the
framework described, this study seeks to offer a unique method of evaluating the
effectiveness of an online training initiative, while at the same time contributing to the body
of knowledge for each under-researched concept discussed.

Methodology

In order to test the hypothesis that the implementation of an eLearning platform

will have an effect on volunteer engagement, a quasi-experimental pretest-posttest without

control quantitative study will be undertaken. Volunteers within the St. John Ambulance
MFR unit will complete a survey designed to measure engagement both prior to the
initiation of the eLearning platform and six weeks after. The pretest scores can then be
compared against the posttest scores as well as normalized data from an international
database of survey responses.

Participants
The volunteer members of the SJA MFR unit at the Cambridge, Ontario branch are
men and women between 18 and 65 years of age. All members of this unit hold current
first aid certification (which is the topic being communicated in the eLearning platform)
and some hold higher related certifications ranging from medical first responder to
paramedic. Members have a wide variety of educational, ethnic, religious, and cultural
backgrounds. The unit reported 40 members at the time of the initiation of this study,
which represents the population from which participants are recruited. Recruitment and
participation in this study is performed online through e-mail and a dedicated survey
website. All 40 members receive an e-mail invitation (Appendix A) to participate in the
study anonymously and, thus, the specific demographics of the sample cannot be
communicated beyond the broad demographics of the population. There is no incentive
offered to potential participants for this study.
Potential participants who identify that they are not members of the MFR unit, do not have
access to e-mail, do not have basic computer skills, or cannot read and understand English are
not permitted to access the survey study and are excluded.