Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

On the Meaning of Volunteering: A Study of Worldviews in Everyday Life

  • Published:
Foundations of Science Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

This article is intended to contribute to the discussion on the meaning of volunteering by investigating voluntary work from the viewpoint of volunteers active in Swedish civil society organizations.Meaning refers both to the cognitive meaning of concepts and to the perceived meaning in life. The aim to uncover the predicates that people attribute to the concept is an attempt to anatomize volunteering as a social construct. Five predicates emerged and they make up the phenomenological structure of volunteering. By contextualizing this structure in contemporary Swedish society, it is demonstrated that the conceptual meaning of volunteering has significance for its existential meaning. The volunteers say that their authenticity is confirmed through the voluntary work since they are making themselves manifest in public. Following Hannah Arendt, the reasons for this is that authenticity demands that the volunteers conduct their actions in a public realm where their actions acquire an intrinsic value as neither coerced nor instrumental.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

Notes

  1. See for instance Jacobsson (2010) and Berggren and Trägårdh (2006). They have discussed the widespread ambivalence between autonomy and spirit of community in contemporary Swedish society.

  2. See Wuthnow (1991) for a similar perspective on the meaning of volunteering in the individualistic and self-interested US society.

  3. Arendt’s notion is a concrete spatiality like a public room, ‘der öffentliche Raum’, in contrast to the more common and more abstract Habermasian public sphere, ‘die Öffentlichkeit’ (Benhabib 2003).

References

  • Ahrne, G. (1994). Social organizations. Interaction inside, outside and between organizations. London: SAGE publ.

    Google Scholar 

  • Almond, S., & Kendall, J. (2000). Taking the employees’ perspective seriously: An initial United Kingdom cross-sectoral comparison. Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly, 29(2), 205–231.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Arendt, H. (1958). The human condition. Chicago: The University of Chicago.

    Google Scholar 

  • Arendt, H. (2005). The promise of politics. New York: Schocken Books.

    Google Scholar 

  • Asplund, J. (1987). Det sociala livets elementära former. Göteborg: Bokförlaget Korpen.

    Google Scholar 

  • Asplund, J. (1991). Essä om Gemeinschaft och Gesellschaft. Göteborg: Bokförlaget Korpen.

    Google Scholar 

  • Benhabib, S. (1992). Models of the public space: Hannah Arendt, the liberal tradition, and Jürgen Habermas. In C. Craig (Ed.), Habermas and the public sphere. Cambridge: The MIT Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Benhabib, S. (2003). The reluctant modernism of Hannah Arendt. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, Cambridge Mass.

    Google Scholar 

  • Berggren, H., & Trägårdh, L. (2006). Är Svensken människa? Gemenskap och oberoende i det moderna Sverige. Stockholm: Norstedts.

    Google Scholar 

  • Blennberger, E. (1993). Begrepp och modeller. I SOU 1993:82, Frivilligt socialt arbete. Kartläggning och kunskapsöversikt. Stockholm: Fritzes.

    Google Scholar 

  • Chartrand, S. (2004). Work in voluntary welfare organizations. A sociological study of voluntary welfare organizations in Sweden (diss.). Stockholm: Almqvist & Wiksell.

    Google Scholar 

  • Clohesy, W. W. (2000). Altruism and the endurance of the good. Voluntas: International Journal of Voluntary and Nonprofit Organizations, 11(3), 237–253.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cnaan, R., Handy, F., & Wadsworth, M. (1996). Defining who is a volunteer: Conceptual and empirical considerations. Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly, 25(3), 364–383.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cohen, J., & Arato, A. (1992). Civil society and political theory. Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Czarniawska, B. (1997). Narrating the organization dramas of institutional identity. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dekker, P., & Halman, L. (2003). Volunteering and values. An introduction. In P. Dekker & L. Halman (Eds.), The values of volunteering. Cross-cultural perspectives. New York: Kluwer Academic/Plenum Publishers.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Eberhard, E. (1998). A pragmatic approach to religion and religious belief. An essay on the rationality of wievs of life. Kampen: Pharos.

    Google Scholar 

  • Eliasoph, N. (2002). Raising good citizens in a bad society: Moral education and political avoidance in civic America. In R. Madsen, W. M. Sullivan, A. Swidler, & S. Tipton (Eds.), Meaning and modernity. Religion, polity, and self. Berkeley: University of California Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Friedman, M. (1992). Feminism and modern friendship: Dislocating the community. In S. Avineri & A. de-Shalit (Eds.), Communitarianism and individualism. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Furåker, B. (1991). Vad är arbete? In Bengt Furåker (Ed.), Arbetets villkor. Lundt: Studentlitteratur.

    Google Scholar 

  • Grassman, E. J. (1997). För andra och för mig. Det frivilliga arbetets innebörder. Sköndalsinstitutets skriftserie, nr.8. Ersta Sköndal Högskola.

  • Grassman, E. J., & Svedberg, L. (1999). Medborgarskapets gestaltningar. Insatser i och utanför föreningslivet. In E. Amnå (Ed.), SOU 1999:84 Civilsamhället. Stockholm: Fakta Info Direkt.

    Google Scholar 

  • Grönlund, H. (2011). Identity and volunteering intertwined: Reflections on the values of young adults. Voluntas: International Journal of Voluntary and Nonprofit Organizations 22(4), 852–874.

  • Handy, F., et al. (2000). Public perception of ”who is a volunteer”: An examination of the net-cost approach from a cross-cultural perspective. Voluntas: International Journal of Voluntary and Nonprofit Organizations, 11(1), 45–65.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Herrman, E. (1998). “I have a dream \(\ldots \)” – eller människans bruk av utopier. In S. Axelsson & T. Pettersson (Eds.), Mot denna framtid. Folkrörelser och folk om framtiden. Stockholm: Carlssons.

  • Hultén, P., & Wijkström, F. (2006). Särart och mervärde i den ideella sektorn. En studie av ledares syn på de idéburna organisationernas betydelse. Stockholm: Socialstyrelsen.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hustinx, L. (2003). Reflexive modernity and styles of volunteering. The Case of the Flemish Red Cross Volunteers (Diss.). Leuven: Faculteit Sociale Wetenschappen Katholieke Universiteit.

  • Hvenmark, J. (2008). Reconsidering membership: A study of individual members’ formal affiliation with democratically governed federations (diss.). Stockholm: Economic Research Institute (EFI) Stockholm School of Economics.

  • Inglehart, R., Basánez, M., Diez-Medrano, J., Halman, L., & Luijkx, R. (Eds.). (2004). Human beliefs and values. A cross-cultural sourcebook based on the 1999–2002 value surveys. Mexico City: Siglo veintiuno editors.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jacobsson, K. (Ed.). (2010). Känslan för det allmänna Medborgarnas relation till staten och varandra. Umeå: Borea.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jeffner, A. (1993). Six cartesian meditations. Kampen: Pharos.

    Google Scholar 

  • Johansson, G. (1997). Möta HIV, möta sig själv En studie av arbetet vid Stiftelsen Noaks Ark-Röda korset. Sköndalsinstitutets skriftserie nr.5. Ersta Sköndal Högskola.

  • Kurtén, T. (1995). Tillit, Verklighet och Värde Begreppsliga reflexioner kring livsåskådningar hos fyrtioen finska författare. Nora: Nya Doxa.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lesley, L. (2003). Reflexive modernity and styles of volunteering. The case of the Flemish Red Cross volunteers. (Diss.). Faculteit Sociale Wetenschappen, Katholieke Universiteit Leuven.

  • Lindfelt, M. (2006). Meningsskapande idrott. Livsåskådningsrelevanta perspektiv och empiriska kontraster. Nora: Nya Doxa.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lorentzen, H. (2004). Fellesskapets fundament. Sivilsamfunnet og individualismen. Oslo: Pax Forlag.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lyons, M., Wijkström, F., & Clary, G. (1998). Comparative studies of volunteering: What is being studied? Voluntary Action, 1(1), 45–54.

    Google Scholar 

  • MacIntyre, A. (1981). After virtue, a study in moral theory. London: Duckworth.

    Google Scholar 

  • Meijs, L., et al. (2003). All in the eyes of the beholder. Perceptions of volunteering across eight countries. In P. Dekker & L. Halman (Eds.), The values of volunteering. Cross-cultural perspectives. New York: Kluwer Academic/Plenum Publishers.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mills, C. W. (1940). Situated actions and vocabularies of motive. American Sociological Review, 5(6), 904–913.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Musick, M., & Wilson, J. (2008). Volunteers. A social profile. Bloomington: Indiana University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • O’Reagan, A. (2009). Imaging the voluntary actor: Interpreting narratives of intent and meaning. European civil society series. Baden-Baden: Nomos.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Pettersson, T. (2009). Religion och samhällspraktik. En jämförande analys av det sekulariserade Sverige. Social Vetenskaplig Tidskrift, 16(3–4).

  • Polkinghorne, D. (1983). Methodology for the human sciences. Systems of inquiry. Albany: State University of New York Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ricoeur, P. (1971/1991). The model of the text: Meaningfull action considered as a text. In From text to action. Essays in hermeneutics, II. Evanston: Northwestern University Press, [orig. publ. in Social Research 38 (1971)].

  • Ricoeur, P. (1975/1991). Phenomenology and hermeneutics. I From text to action. Essays in hermeneutics, II. Evanston: Northwestern University Press, [orig. publ. Nous 9 (1975) Indiana University].

  • Ryle, G. (1968). A puzzling element in the notion of thinking. In P. F. Strawson (Ed.), Studies in the philosophy of thought and action. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Schütz, A. (1953/1999) Den vardagliga och den vetenskapliga tolkningen av mänskliga handlingar. In J. Bengtsson (eds.) Den sociala världens fenomenologi. Göteborg: Daidalos, [orig. publ. 1953 Philosophy and Phenomenological Research 14].

  • Sigurdson, O. (2000). Den lyckliga filosofin. Etik och politik hos Hägerström, Tingsten, makarna Myrdal och Hedenius. Stockholm/Stehag: Brutus Östlings Bokförlag Symposium.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sjöstrand, S. E. (2000). The organization of nonprofit activities. Voluntas: International Journal of Voluntary and Nonprofit Organizations. 11(3), 199–216.

  • Stebbins, R. A. (1996). Volunteering. A serious leisure perspective. Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly, 25(2), 211–224.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Story, D. (1992). Volunteerism: The ”self-regarding” and ”other-regarding” aspects of the human spirit. Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly, 21(3), 3–18.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Svedberg, L., Jegermalm, M., & von Essen, J. (2010). Svenskarnas engagemang är större än någonsin—insatser i och utanför föreningslivet. Rapport till regeringskansliet.

  • Taylor, C. (1985). Philosophical papers, vol. I & II. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Taylor, C. (1991). The Ethics of Authenticity. Cambridge Mass:Harvard University Press.

  • Taylor, C. (1993). Vad är mänskligt handlande? In E. Uddhammar (Ed.), Gemenskaparna. Stockholm: Timbro.

  • Tipton, S. M. (2002). Social differentation and moral pluralism. In M. Richard, W. M. Sullivan, A. Swidler, & S. M. Tipton (Eds.), Meaning and modernity. Religion, polity and self. Berkeley: University of California Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Toulmin, S. (1961). Foresight and Understanding. An inquiry into the aims of science. London.

  • Trägårdh, L. (2007). The ”civil society” debate in Sweden: The welfare state challenged. In L. Trägårdh (Ed.), State and civil society in Northern Europé. The Swedish model reconsidered. New York: Berghahn Books.

    Google Scholar 

  • von Essen, J. (2008). Om det ideella arbetets betydelse—en studie om människors livsåskådningar (diss.). Uppsala: Teologiska institutionen Uppsala universitet.

    Google Scholar 

  • Westerlund, K. (2002). Sammanhangets mening. En empirisk studie av livsåskådningar i föreställningar om genteknik och i berättelser om barnlöshet, assisterad befruktning och adoption. (Diss.) Acta Universitatis Upsaliensis. Uppsala Studies in Faiths and Ideologies nr. 10. Uppsala Universitet, Uppsala.

  • Wijkström, F., & Lundström, T. (2002). Den ideella sektorn: Organisationerna i det civila samhället. Stockholm: Sober Förlag.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wijkström, F., Einarsson, S., & Larsson, O. (2004). Staten och det Civila samhället Idétraditioner och tankemodeller i den statliga bidragsgivningen till ideella organisationer. Stockholm: Socialstyrelsen och Handelshögskolan i Stockholm EFI.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wilson, J. (2000). Volunteering. Annual Revue of Sociology 26, 215–240.

  • Wilson, J. M., & Musick, M. (1997). Who cares? Toward an integrated theory of volunteer work. American Sociological Review, 62(5), 694–713.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wilson, J. (2012). Volunteerism research: A review essay. Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly, 41(2), 176–212.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wuthnow, R. (1991). Acts of compassion. Caring for others and helping our selves. Princeton: Princeton University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Yeung, A. B. (2004). Individually together volunteering in late modernity: Social work in the Finnish Church (Diss.). Helsinki: The Finnish Federation for Social Welfare and Health.

    Google Scholar 

  • Zachariasson, U. (2002). Forces by which we live. Religion and religious experience from the perspective of a pragmatic philosophical antropology (Diss.). Uppsala: Uppsala Universitet.

    Google Scholar 

  • Zelizer, V. A. (1994). The social meaning of money pin money, paychecks, poor relief, & other currencies. New York: Basic Books.

    Google Scholar 

  • Zerubavel, E. (1991). The fine line: Making distinctions in everyday life. New York: The Free Press.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute for Civil Society Research, Ersta Sköndal University College, Stigbergsgatan 30, 100 61, Stockholm, Sweden

    Johan von Essen

Authors
  1. Johan von Essen
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Johan von Essen.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

von Essen, J. On the Meaning of Volunteering: A Study of Worldviews in Everyday Life. Found Sci 21, 315–333 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10699-014-9392-9

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10699-014-9392-9

Keywords

Search

Navigation