Why watch bees? Understanding citizen scientists' motivations in order to improve recruitment, retention, and project outcomes

The benefits of citizen science to science, participants, and socio-ecological systems are increasingly recognized and valued, yet what motivates volunteer participants remains little studied and poorly understood. To better... [ view full abstract ]

The benefits of citizen science to science, participants, and socio-ecological systems are increasingly recognized and valued, yet what motivates volunteer participants remains little studied and poorly understood. To better understand citizen scientists’ motivations and how they benefit from their participation, we surveyed volunteers in the Great Pollinator Project in New York City. We conducted pre- and post-season surveys and focus group discussions to find out who the active volunteers were, their motivations for joining, and what benefits of participation they experienced. With demographics and a range of motivators similar to those found in other projects, our findings correspond with and support those of other studies. However, while studies of motivations of environmental volunteers have indicated helping the environment as the strongest factor, helping or contributing to science was a leading motivation of our volunteers. Learning about bees and how to attract pollinators was as strong or a stronger motivator for many participants in the project. Being outdoors was also an attraction, particularly finding a meditative setting in an urban area to quietly watch bees. We discuss some of the steps we took in response to participants’ feedback and recommend studies to improve understanding of volunteer motivations to benefit volunteers themselves as well as citizen science project outcomes.