Raising the next generation of public servants? Parental influence on volunteering behavior and public service career aspirations

While there is a large body of literature examining the effect public service motivation (PSM) has on both an individual’s career and volunteering decisions, the effects of social learning and parental influences on both volunteerism and selection into public service are relatively unexplored. The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between parental volunteering and career choice, PSM, and the volunteering behaviors and career choices of their adult children.

The authors examine data collected from first-year undergraduate students at a large, public university in the southeastern USA to examine, the impact of parents in the development of public service behaviors like volunteering and career choice.

The authors find that parental influence matters in shaping voluntary behavior and career aspirations, but that this social learning is distinct by gender.

The authors are unaware of work that directly focusses on parents’ volunteering and career choices, after controlling for PSM, on both the volunteering and public service career decisions of their children.