Pilot Study
Thank you for participating in this pilot study. Your help might improve the condition of future Christian missions. Information you provide will be kept confidential. Your participation is voluntary. We do need good interview answers to better understand the responses. A summary of the results of this research is available to those who participate if they request it. This study is in four sections, each with brief instructions. We anticipate it will take 1 to 2 hours to complete all the parts.
(1) Contact Information
Please write your name and contact information only here.
Name: ________________________________________________
Telephone: ________________________________________________
Facsimile: ________________________________________________
Address: ________________________________________________
________________________________________________
Email: ________________________________________________
Send me a summary of the research results YES: o / NO: o
If yes, then it send to my ADDRESS: o / FAX: o / EMAIL: o
(2) Attrition Tracking Guidelines
Adapted from Elkins and Lewis 1997
Perhaps the most important function of this guide is that it will help missionaries and mission administrators keep in mind the factors they depend on to select, prepare, and support missionaries on the field. The Tracking Guide will promote a constant review of these factors in the overall process of sending and maintaining the missionary task force. This could contribute significantly to alerting missions and missionaries of problem areas and allow time to compensate for them.
The information gathered is useful for planning purposes. Administrative decisions are only as good as available understood information. Analysis of the data will suggest specific courses of action aimed at preventing unnecessary attrition. Sharpening our aim in dealing with the root causes of attrition will help reduce the number of those coming back prematurely, and increase the overall effectiveness and stewardship of missions.
Please check/tick the reasons for departure that apply.
ü Weather.
Too hot, too cold, too humid, or too much rain.
Anticipated Reasons
____________ Normal retirement. Retirement following normal completion of missionary
service or contract.
____________ Completion of contract. Completion of contract established for a specific
task or time period.
Political or Catastrophic
Reasons
____________ Political removal. Forced removal from country due to war, government
persecution, epidemics, famine, civil unrest (riots, bandits, etc.), withdrawal
of visa, or denial of visa extension.
____________ Death in service. Death or unexplained disappearance of serving missionary.
(Since you are not dead leave this blank).
Marriage / Family Reasons
____________ Children. Children unable to adjust to culture, schooling, health, or
behavioural problems.
____________ Elderly parents. Need to care for aging parents.
____________ Marriage / family conflicts. Marriage or family conflict, or death of spouse or
child.
____________ Outside marriage. Marriage to someone outside the sending organisation.
Sending Organisation
Reasons
____________ Home support. Inadequate financial, prayer, and other support from
home country.
____________ Disagreement with sending organisation. Disagreement with sending organisation over policy,
authority, etc.
____________ Theological reasons. Disagreement with the sending organisation over
charismatic issues, church practice, or doctrinal issues.
Personal Reasons
____________ Immature spiritual life. Problems related to spiritual life such as unmet
spiritual needs, lack of spiritual maturity, etc.
____________ Health problems. Problems related to mental or physical health.
____________ Inadequate commitment. Lack of understanding of the cost of commitment
involved in long-term missionary service.
____________ Personal concerns. Problems related to low self-esteem, dealing with
stress, anger, unrealistic expectations, the need to marry, loneliness, etc.
____________ Lack of call. Lack of conviction
regarding the genuine call to missionary work, or loss of it.
____________ Immoral lifestyle. Immoral behaviour, alcohol, or drug abuse.
Team Reasons
____________ Problems with peer missionaries. Relationship problems with mission field leaders or
fellow missionaries.
____________ Problems with local leaders. Relationship problems with local church leaders or
other local colleagues on the field.
Cultural Reasons
____________ Poor cultural adaptation. Unable to adapt to culture, customs, traditions, and
living conditions of the country.
____________ Language difficulties. Unable to learn the ethnic, trade, or country
language adequately.
Work-Related Reasons
____________ Dismissal by sending organisation. Dismissal due to inability to carry out duties and
responsibilities satisfactorily.
____________ Lack of job satisfaction. Inadequate,
inappropriate, or authoritarian supervision of work by sending organisation,
including lack of pastoral care, team building, and other support.
____________ Inadequate training. Inadequate or inappropriate training and preparation
for missionary work.
Other Reasons
____________ Other reasons. Other important reasons not mentioned (specify here):
____________________________________________________
____________________________________________________
Now, go back and assign a percentage to each of the checked/ticked reasons in terms of how much it contributed to the decision to leave. All the percentages should add to 100. Here is an example:
ü 20 Weather. Too hot, too cold, too humid, or
too much rain.
(3) Interview Questions
The following questions are designed to for interviews. Do NOT worry about English: just type. Your responses will remain confidential. What we need are your thoughts, so we can pool it with the other responses. We hope to gain enough understanding to decrease the number of Singapore missionaries leaving the field.
Please spend 5 to 10 minutes DISCUSSING each
question here. Answer them in
sequence (1, 2, 3, etc.)
1.
Did you to perform the work of a missionary?
2.
Did you become a missionary on a whim, just because you felt like doing it?
3.
Were you capable of doing the work necessary to be a missionary?
4.
Did you work as a missionary because you felt you had to or should do it?
5.
Did you fit in with a group of people important to the work?
6.
Why did you stop working as a missionary?
(4) Study Validation
Please provide the following data to help us more accurately represent valid results should potential data problems occur when analyzing the results of this study. We will separate these answers from your other data. In no case will anyone be allowed access to identify you from the responses. Your accurate answers might help prevent misinterpretation of the results.
Please give short answers. Use one word where possible.
How old are you
What is your education level
What is your race/ethnicity
Are you male or female
Are you married or single
Do you have children, and if so how old are they
Are you concerned about bonding a son for national service
How many years were you on the field
What country do you work in
Are you leaving because the sending organisation wants you to work in Singapore
Are you leaving due to filial piety
Are you leaving because your family wants you to be secure in Singapore
Does you family appreciate you being a missionary
Are your parents Christian
Do you feel shamed into leaving the field
Thank you for your help.
If you have any questions or comments please provide them here: