【Paper】
Environmental Volunteers' Recycling Activities and Empowerment
――Competence, Solidarity, and Collective Efficacy Enhances Volunteers' Intentions to Participate in Further Activities――
Hiroe Maeda*, Yukio Hirose*, Kaori Ando**, Junkichi Sugiura*** and Kayo Yorihuji*
* Graduate School of Environmental Studies, Nagoya University
** Faculty of Human Life and Environment, Nara Women's University
*** Department of Education, Aichi University of Education
† Correspondence should be addressed to Hiroe Maeda:
Graduate School of Environmental Studies, Nagoya University
（1 Furo-cho, Chigusa-ku, Nagoya City, Aichi, 464-8601 Japan）

Abstract
The present study explored the effects of commitment to volunteer environmental activities on empowerment and intention to participate in further volunteer activities. A survey of 378 volunteer members was conducted in two cities in which the municipal administrations had introduced a new recycling system. Main results of the survey were the following. The commitment enhanced both individual empowerment and collective empowerment. The effect of commitment to volunteer activities on intention was mediated by the acquired empowerment. Collective empowerment（efficacy to community change）and individual empowerment（solidarity）were the main determinants of their intention to participate in further voluntary activities.

Key words: environmental volunteer, commitment, individual empowerment, collective empowerment