Retention and Efficacy of Citizen Scientist Volunteers of the Texas Quail Index

Authors

Kelly S. Reyna, University of North TexasFollow
Dale Rollins, Rolling Plains Quail Research FoundationFollow

Abstract

The Texas Quail Index (TQI) was a 5-year, science-based project that utilized citizen scientists to collect data in the field, including 5 indices of bobwhite abundance in the spring, and 3 indices of bobwhite abundance in the fall. Over the course of the study, 84% of all volunteers dropped out of the program and <8% of all data sets were complete. Accordingly, we surveyed the volunteers by mail to determine the rate and cause of participation decline and to identify characteristics of a reliable volunteer. Results indicated that annual volunteer participation rate declined more rapidly as time and labor requirements increased. Similarly, 74.3% of survey respondents who dropped out of the study reported leaving because the project required too much time and work. Motives may have contributed to the volunteer attrition as 72% of volunteers joined the program to learn more about quail management; however 71% of those that left the program reported not gaining knowledge in that area. We recommend that project designs, for citizen-science projects, should incorporate the motives of volunteers and recruit those whose motives best align with project goals. We also recommend that citizen-science coordinators keep volunteer tasks short and within the interest of the volunteer, to increase retention. Finally, we recommend stipends for volunteers on large-scale, laborious projects.

DOI

https://doi.org/10.7290/nqsp08oc6g

Recommended Citation

Reyna, Kelly S. and Rollins, Dale (2017) "Retention and Efficacy of Citizen Scientist Volunteers of the Texas Quail Index," National Quail Symposium Proceedings: Vol. 8 , Article 69.
https://doi.org/10.7290/nqsp08oc6g
Available at: https://trace.tennessee.edu/nqsp/vol8/iss1/69