Abstract
The question of declining membership of non-profit organizations (NPOs) has been central in academic discussion and research has indicated changes in the way people volunteer. Less emphasis has been on the functions of volunteers as a resource for NPOs and how changes such as increased reliance on professionals in their operations can influence the volume and type of volunteering. This paper examines the value of volunteers as a resource for Icelandic NPOs in the field of welfare services. It is based on a study of the majority of active Icelandic NPOs in the welfare field, as well as an analysis of their respective websites. The findings show that volunteer contributions do not constitute a significant part of the activities of most Icelandic NPOs in welfare services. Apart from membership of boards, volunteers seem to be used primarily as a means of supplementing other resources, such as temporary fundraising efforts. However, the level of volunteering varies according to the size and operational type of organization.
Résumé
La question du déclin de l’adhésion des membres aux organismes sans but lucratif est au cœur des discussions du milieu académique et la recherche suggère que le bénévolat change. Moins d’attention a été portée aux fonctions des bénévoles en tant que ressources desdits organismes et à la façon dont des changements, notamment le recours accru à des professionnels, peut influencer la population bénévole et le type de bénévolat. Cet article étudie la valeur des bénévoles comme ressources d’organismes sans but lucratif islandais dans le domaine de l’aide sociale. Il se fonde sur une étude ayant porté sur la majorité des organismes de bienfaisance du domaine de l’aide sociale, ainsi que sur une analyse de leur site Web respectif.Les découvertes démontrent que, dans le domaine de l’aide sociale, les contributions bénévoles ne constituent pas une part importante des activités de la plupart des organismes sans but lucratif islandais. En dehors des membres de conseils et comités, les bénévoles semblent être principalement utilisés dans le but d’obtenir d’autres ressources, dont des initiatives de financement temporaires. Le bénévolat varie cependant selon la taille de l’organisme et ses activités.
Zusammenfassung
Das Thema rückläufige Mitgliedschaften in gemeinnützigen Organisationen steht in akademischen Diskussionen im Vordergrund. Studien weisen darauf hin, dass sich die Art und Weise, in der Menschen ehrenamtlich tätig sind, geändert hat. Mehr im Hintergrund standen bislang die Funktionen Ehrenamtlicher als eine Ressource für gemeinnützige Organisationen und wie Änderungen, beispielsweise eine vermehrte Abhängigkeit von Fachkräften in ihrem Geschäftsbetrieb, das Volumen und die Art der ehrenamtlichen Arbeit beeinflussen können. Diese Abhandlung untersucht den Wert Ehrenamtlicher als eine Ressource für isländische gemeinnützige Organisationen im Sozialdienstleistungsbereich. Sie beruht auf einer Studie der Mehrzahl aktiver isländischer gemeinnütziger Organistionen im Sozialdienstleistungsbereich sowie auf einer Analyse ihrer jeweiligen Websites.Die Ergebnisse zeigen, dass die ehrenamtlichen Beiträge bei den Aktivitäten der meisten isländischen gemeinnützigen Organisationen im Sozialdienstleistungsbereich keinen großen Teil ausmachen. Abgesehen von Vorstandsmitgliedschaften scheinen Ehrenamtliche hauptsächlich als eine Ergänzung zu anderen Ressourcen eingesetzt zu werden, wie beispielsweise bei zeitlich begrenzten Spendenaktionen. Allerdings variiert der Umfang der ehrenamtlichen Tätigkeit entsprechend der Größe und Betriebsart der Organisation.
Resumen
La cuestión de la decreciente afiliación a organizaciones sin ánimo de lucro (NPO, por sus siglas en inglés) ha sido central en el debate académico y la investigación ha indicado cambios en la forma en la que la gente realiza voluntariado. Menos énfasis se ha mostrado en las funciones de los voluntarios como recursos para las NPO y cómo los cambios tales como una creciente dependencia de profesionales en sus operaciones pueden influir en el volumen y tipo del voluntariado. El presente documento examina el valor de los voluntarios como recursos para las NPO islandesas en el campo de los servicios sociales. Se basa en un estudio de la mayoría de NPO islandesas activas en el campo del bienestar, así como también en un análisis de sus respectivos sitios web. Los hallazgos muestran que las contribuciones de los voluntarios no constituyen una parte significativa de las actividades de la mayoría de las NPO islandesas en los servicios sociales. Aparte de ser miembros de los consejos, los voluntarios parecen ser utilizados fundamentalmente como un medio de complementar otros recursos, tales como los esfuerzos temporales de recaudación de fondos. Sin embargo, el nivel de voluntariado varía según el tamaño y el tipo operativo de organización.
要約
非盈利组织 (NPO) 会员数量减少的问题是学术讨论的中心,同时研究表明人们参与志愿活动的方式已经出现变化,更少强调将志愿者作为NPO的资源,以及在运营中增加使用专业人员的变化如何影响志愿数量及类型。本文解释了志愿者在冰岛福利领域的NPO资源中的价值,基于福利领域的大部分活跃冰岛NPO的研究,及其各自网站的分析。调查结果表明,志愿者贡献不构成大部分从事福利服务的冰岛NPO的重要部分。除了委员会成员之外,志愿者似乎被主要用于补充其他资源,如临时筹款活动。然而,志愿级别因组织规模和运营类型而异。.
ملخص
كان إنخفاض عضوية المنظمات الغير هادفة للربح (NPOs) هو السؤال الرئيسي في المناقشة الأكاديمية والبحثية الذي أشار إلى تغييرات في طريقة تتطوع الأشخاص. قد تم التركيز أقل على وظائف المتطوعين كمورد للمنظمات الغير هادفة للربح (NPOs) وكيف يمكن للتغييرات مثل زيادة الإعتماد على المتخصصين في عملياتهم يمكن أن يؤثر على حجم ونوع العمل التطوعي. يفحص هذا البحث في قيمة المتطوعين كمورد للمنظمات الغير هادفة للربح (NPOs) الأيسلندية في مجال خدمات الرعاية الإجتماعية. لأنه يقوم على دراسة غالبية المنظمات الغير هادفة للربح (NPOs) الأيسلندية العاملة في مجال الرعاية الإجتماعية، فضلا” عن تحليل المواقع الخاصة بكل منها.أظهرت النتائج أن مساهمات المتطوعين لا تشكل جزءا” هاما” من أنشطة معظم المنظمات الغير هادفة للربح (NPOs) الأيسلندية في خدمات الرعاية الإجتماعية. بصرف النظر عن عضوية المجالس، يبدو أن المتطوعين يتم إستخدامهم في المقام الأول كوسيلة لتكميل الموارد الأخرى، مثل جهود مؤقتة لجمع التبرعات. مع ذلك، فإن مستوى التطوع يختلف وفقا لحجم ونوع التشغيل للمنظمة.
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Notes
There were 114 in the original sample, but in the course of revision, it was decided to omit operational units that were part of umbrella organizations and had only paid staff due to the nature of their work.
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Hrafnsdóttir, S., Kristmundsson, Ó.H. Volunteers for NPOs in Welfare Services in Iceland: A Diminishing Resource?. Voluntas 28, 204–222 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11266-016-9790-4
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11266-016-9790-4