Introduction

Part I Frameworks

1 Concepts and definitions: hunting Snarks and ‘mapping volunteerland’
2 Trends in voluntary action

Part II Contours

Introduction to Part II
3 Diversity and inequality in voluntary action
4 Core and periphery
5 Community-level variations in voluntary action: places don’t volunteer, people do
6 Circumstances, habits and trajectories: journeys into and through volunteering

Part III Impacts

Introduction to Part III
7 Do not expect miracles: the impacts of voluntary action
8 Volunteering, employability and policy
9 Volunteering, health and well-being
10 Volunteering and civic engagement

Part IV Changing contexts

Introduction to Part IV
11 Demographic change, economic circumstances and attitudes to volunteering
12 Cultivating and conserving the spirit of service
13 COVID-19 and voluntary action

Conclusions: Beveridge and the spirit of service
References
Index

'This wide-ranging review of the data on volunteering will be valuable for anyone with an interest in this topic. For those working with and leading volunteers, it offers an accessible route into engaging with the breadth of academic data on volunteering, and to understanding the changing policy context within which it has been operating in recent years.'
Helen Timbrell, Centre for Charity Effectiveness

‘This long overdue analysis is a welcome contribution to our understanding of the scope and impact of volunteering. Based upon a wide-ranging review of post-war trends, policies and practice, this thought-provoking critical analysis challenges widely held views on volunteering. Volunteering shouldn’t be taken for granted – and this analysis should inform policy and practice over the coming decade.’
Karl Wilding, University of Kent

‘Volunteering is as old as time – both universal and politically highly contested. In this insightful panoramic view, John Mohan skilfully interrogates the debate about volunteering and at the same time promotes its real and eternal value.’
Julia Unwin, Chair of Civil Society Futures Inquiry 2017-19


Strong claims are often made about the extent and benefits of voluntary action. Stakeholders vigorously argue that volunteering can be expanded, and that the ‘spirit of social action’ can be mobilised for the collective good. However, such contentions are often loosely based in evidence.

Volunteering is frequently invoked as an ‘essential renewable resource’ for social development, but is it a universal one? Voluntary action – who does what, where, and how much they do – is highly stratified, yet little attention is paid to socioeconomic variations in participation. Claims made about volunteering range from very broad statements about its ability to support a healthy democracy to assertions about its assured benefits for health and well-being, civic engagement, employability and social capital.

Considerable hopes are invested in volunteering, but can it bear the weight of expectations thrust upon it? This book provides an informed understanding of the character, distribution and impacts of volunteering. It offers a balanced account of evidence for the benefits of volunteering, and presents a critical assessment of the likelihood of spreading the ‘spirit of service’ throughout the population.