Factors and motivations contributing to community volunteers' participation in a nursery feeding project in Malawi

Bibliographic Data

ID3885613
AuthorsIsabelle Uny (0000-0002-9548-5332, corresponding author), Isabelle Wazo Uny
Year2008
Volume18
Issue3
Pages437-445
Publication date2008-06-01
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueDevelopment in Practice (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0961-4524 • E-ISSN: 1364-9213
PublisherInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/09614520802030649
OpenAlexW2004060132
LanguageEN
Citations received3
References cited7

This article reports on a study to explore the factors and motivations that contribute to community volunteers' participation in a nursery feeding project in Malawi. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with community volunteers in 14 of the 32 sites in the programme. The findings pointed to a mix of intrinsic motivations, namely a deep concern for orphans and vulnerable children, a moral obligation to help, and a declared love of the work undertaken, and also to external factors such as spirituality, links of reciprocity, and the building of social capital. Understanding what motivates volunteers to take part in resource-poor settings is crucial to recognising, facilitating, and sustaining the work that they do. Further research into volunteering in the South is crucially needed

Community development · Economic growth · Norm of reciprocity · Obligation · Political science · Public relations · Social capital · Social science · Socioeconomics · Sociology · Poverty, Education, and Child Welfare · Religion, Society, and Development · Tourism, Volunteerism, and Development

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