Age Is But a Number? An Exploration of Age Differences in Episodic Volunteering

VOLUNTAS: International Journal of Voluntary and Nonprofit Organizations - Age has long been understood as a strong demographic determinant of volunteering. However, to date, limited literature...     

‘Young,Fun, and Free:’ Episodic Volunteers in Ghana,South Africa and Tanzania

VOLUNTAS: International Journal of Voluntary and Nonprofit Organizations - As scholarship on episodic volunteering expands, researchers question if episodic volunteering is similar to, and/or...     

The Joiners: Active Voluntary Association Membership in Twenty African Countries

To what extent do sub-Saharan Africans actively participate in voluntary groups, and how does development aid influence this involvement? This paper presents a baseline assessment of membership predictors for secular and religious voluntary groups across 20 sub-Saharan African countries. Using Afrobarometer survey data, I adopt an asset-based resources approach in which development aid is seen to mobilize local resources and increase incentives to join voluntary groups. The theory is tested with multilevel, cross-national logistic regression models, including both individual-level and country-level variables to predict active membership. At the individual level, I find that membership in voluntary groups is most likely among those who are well educated, rural-dwelling, male, black, and middle aged—a reflection of social advantage. However, poorer Africans are also likely to join such groups, as are those with a strong religious affinity. At the national level, development aid is positively tied to voluntary group membership, but democratic and economic progresses have little to no consequence on this behavior.     

Repeat and Non-returning Volunteers: The Promise of Episodic Events for Volunteer Recruitment and Retention

VOLUNTAS: International Journal of Voluntary and Nonprofit Organizations - In this article, we are concerned with the recruitment potential of one-off episodic events for attracting and retaining...