Linking Members to Leaders: How Civic Associations Can Strengthen Members’ External Political Efficacy

Americans’ sense of external political efficacy—their belief in their ability to influence government decisions—has declined precipitously in recent decades, eroding the public’s confidence in our system of representative democracy. Scholars have long argued that involvement in civic associations can help ordinary Americans realize their political efficacy, yet a lack of longitudinal data on association members’ attitudes and behaviors has impeded efforts to test this claim. To collect such a dataset, we partnered with a national environmental association to conduct a unique panel study of members of eight state-level organizations. We show that members who get to know their association’s leaders believe that they have greater influence over government decisions. Our findings suggest that civic associations can strengthen their members’ efficacy by cultivating volunteer leadership and fostering relationships between members and leaders.

Post-CaRMS match survey for fourth year medical students

Background: We aimed to analyze which medical school experiences contribute to success in an increasingly competitive CaRMS match. Methods: We surveyed all matched University of Saskatchewan 2019 medical graduates on characteristics of their applications: number of program applications, interviews obtained, experiences (research, volunteer, leadership), awards and money spent on the residency match process, and qualitative reflections on the process. Using published CaRMS statistics based on number of positions versus applicants, specialties were divided into high availability/low demand (HA) (e.g. family and internal medicine) and low availability/high demand (LA) (e.g. dermatology and emergency medicine). Quantitative results were analyzed using descriptive statistics, chi-square and t-tests, and qualitative results thematically. Results: Data from 27 of 94 matched students were included. LA applicants were more likely to report at least one research project on their CV (66.67% among LA vs. 15.38% among HA, n = 27, χ2 = 8.640, p = 0.013), with a greater number of research presentations (mean=3.75 presentations vs. 2.07, t (25) = -2.251, p = 0.033). LA applicants had more elective weeks outside Saskatchewan (mean 11.75 weeks vs. 7.40 weeks, t (25) = -2.532, p = 0.018). Other application variables were not different between groups. Some students endorsed broader electives strategies, others (especially in surgical disciplines) supported narrower ones. Students reported travel, financial burden, document submission, and uncertainty as the greatest match process stressors. Conclusions: LA applicants cited more research projects and presentations, spent more elective weeks outside Saskatchewan, but were otherwise similar to HA applicants. Further studies should be done on student factors in the residency match process.

Personal Reflection on Board Leadership and Ethical Decision-Making

Leadership experiences provide opportunities for personal growth and increased self-efficacy. A single lens for reflection about service to AMTA via the Board of Directors is presented, recognizing myriad experiences with volunteer leadership. The 2019 Code of Ethics empowers individual responsibility, serves as a guide for ethical decision-making, and provides hindsight for personal reflection.

PRODUCTIVE AND ACTIVE RURAL AGING: TOWARD CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES

Despite global trends in rural population ageing, relatively little attention within research and policy has been directed to understanding what it means for rural people, communities and institutions to be at the forefront of twenty-first century demographic change. To build understanding of rural ageing, this symposium draws together papers from four countries to provide insights in the gaps in rural ageing research – specifically the in context of productive and active rural ageing by examining rural work, retirement and volunteering through the critical perspectives of citizenship, contestation and complexity. Winterton and Warburton will explore how active citizenship trends among rural older adults support or hinder the capacity of rural settings to support health ageing. Colibaba and Skinner will discuss the contestation of rural ageing by examining a volunteer-based rural library and the emergent ‘contested spaces of older voluntarism’ whereby older volunteer negotiate their rights and responsibilities associated with ageing and volunteering in rural communities. Duvvury and Ni Leime will examine the interactions between the twin phenomena of feminisation of agriculture and the feminisation of ageing in the consequent implications for rural women’s work and retirement. Skinner and Joseph offer a critical perspective on voluntarism in ageing rural communities by examining volunteer leadership biographies as another means of understanding the contribution of older rural adults.

CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES ON VOLUNTARISM IN AGING RURAL COMMUNITIES: VOLUNTEER LEADERSHIP BIOGRAPHIES

Voluntarism has been portrayed as a productive and even transformative process whereby rural communities, households and older residents are able to meet the challenges of changing rural demographics. Yet, little attention has been paid to building a critical perspective on the complex and often-contested expectations placed on older rural volunteers. This paper focuses on the particular gap in understanding the contributions of older rural adults as a crucial resource in creating opportunities for aging in place and sustainable rural community development. Drawing on research into voluntarism in Canada’s aging resource communities, this paper presents qualitative findings from innovative ‘volunteer leadership biographies’ with older residents who were involved in key voluntary sector initiatives to improve community development. The findings show how older volunteer leadership is embedded in both place (residency) and time (life course), revealing new dimensions to the problem of understanding volunteer leadership in an era of rural population change.

The Importance of Inclusion, Diversity, and Equity to the Future of the Infectious Diseases Society of America

The Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) has grown and evolved considerably since its foundation in 1963 as an academic professional society. It currently has >11 000 members, both domestic and international, drawn from the breadth of infectious diseases practice, from basic research to public health. Governance of the Society has not evolved as rapidly, and, in the last few years, it was increasingly evident to many members that the IDSA leadership was less representative of the membership than it ought to be. As a result of a rigorous review of its governance structure, the Society has committed to a policy of inclusion, diversity, access, and equity. It has also reformed the methods by which future IDSA leaders are identified and given roles. These changes should increase the opportunities for all members of the Society to participate in its volunteer leadership.