Chowdhury, Tanvir TurinQasqas, Mahdi J.2019-11-152019-11-152019-11-13Qasqas, M. J. (2019). Examining Factors that Influence Organizational Commitment in Volunteer Leaders of Non-profit Islamic Organizations Across Urban Alberta (Doctoral thesis, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada). Retrieved from https://prism.ucalgary.ca.http://hdl.handle.net/1880/111216Ongoing resource challenges in the Canadian nonprofit sector and a national decline in volunteer rates and hours necessitates a deeper understanding of factors influencing organizational commitment in volunteer leaders. However, research on volunteer leaders in organizations mostly powered by volunteers and nonprofit Islamic organizations are scarce. The purpose of this mixed-methods cross-sectional study is to provide evidence on factors that influence organizational commitment amongst volunteer leaders in nonprofit Islamic organizations across urban Alberta. Survey data collected from 216 active adult volunteer leaders was used to examine the relationship between intrinsic motivation, position satisfaction, role clarity (explanatory variables), and organizational commitment. Then, data from 36 semi-structured interviews was subjected to applied thematic analysis to provide deeper explanations of the findings plus highlight unique cases and cultural nuances. Results of a hierarchical regression analysis indicate that the explanatory variables account for 40% of the change in organizational commitment. Interview data reveals the paramount importance of feeling a sense of autonomy, competence, and relatedness (the components of intrinsic motivation). Whereas factors that decreased intrinsic motivation included perceived feelings of control (i.e. micromanagement), a sense of failure due to destructive criticism, and feelings of rejection resulting from condescending behaviours of others. Despite periods of dissatisfaction, participants repeatedly identified the salient role religious beliefs had on their reasons to volunteer and/or willingness to keep serving amidst added stressors. Themes included the importance of, serving for the sake of God (sincerity or ikhlas), fulfilling one’s obligations as a leader (amanah), perseverance in the face of stressors (sabr), demonstrating gratitude (shukr), and mutual consultation (shura). Practice and policy-making recommendations involve integrating Islamic values and practices into existing evidence-based volunteer human resource management strategies to increase the likelihood for uptake. Research recommendations include construct development of Islamic values to be developed into scales and/or interventions (e.g. psycho-spiritual first aid). Given the intersection between the dearth of research, inter/intrapersonal dynamics, and diversity amongst volunteer leaders across Canada, utilizing a localized and culturally adapted strategic planning framework for knowledge mobilization can be promising; especially for organizations heavily reliant on volunteers.engUniversity of Calgary graduate students retain copyright ownership and moral rights for their thesis. You may use this material in any way that is permitted by the Copyright Act or through licensing that has been assigned to the document. For uses that are not allowable under copyright legislation or licensing, you are required to seek permission.Organizational CommitmentNonprofit Islamic OrganizationsVolunteer LeadersMotivationRole ClarityPosition SatisfactionPsycho-spiritual first aidEducation--Social SciencesSociology--Organizationaldoctoral thesis10.11575/PRISM/37243