This paper presents a typology of occupation-related volunteering where an individual’s occupational competencies and resources underpin their volunteering. Their occupation is the key to employability’s occupational competencies and resources intersecting volunteerability’s availability, willingness, and ability to volunteer (see Meijs et al. in Voluntary Action 8:36–54, 2006). It theorizes the intersection as occupation-related volunteering (Biermann et al. in SAGE Open, 14:1–24, 2024). The typology’s two dimensions capture employment and volunteering practices across all work-life stages and create five explanatory types of occupation-related volunteering: self-facilitated Occupational Volunteering and Occupational Development Volunteering and the employer-facilitated Occupational Bestowing, Senpage Service, and Occupational HR Development. The conceptualization captures employability intersecting volunteerability due to the underlying, often prerequisite, occupation and caters to cultural and organizational diversity in praxis and theory. It synthesizes and reorganizes cross-disciplinary knowledge, creating concepts and language to encourage a volunteering-specific research approach. The typology and the research lenses of “becoming, doing, and relating” to one’s occupation (Anteby et al. in Academy of Management Annals 10:183–244, 2016) combine to prompt empirical volunteering research with suggested questions about the praxis, practices, and practitioners of occupation-related volunteering.

We contribute to the research stream on volunteer retention and commitment that examines the influence of satisfaction on retention by (1) examining potential antecedents to satisfaction, (2) framing satisfaction as volunteers’ satisfaction with their volunteering experience, and (3) evaluating a variety of potential outcome variables. We examined the influence of volunteer’s satisfaction with their overall volunteering experience on six behavioral intentions (1-year retention intentions, 5-year retention intentions, donation intentions, bequest intentions, volunteer recruitment intentions, and word-of-mouth intentions). Data were collected from participating Canadian nonprofit organizations, resulting in 599 completed questionnaires from active volunteers. Satisfaction had a significant influence on the four nonmonetary support intentions. Feeling valued influenced our outcomes indirectly through satisfaction and had a direct effect on four outcome variables. Perceived usefulness was a significant antecedent of feeling valued. Moderation effects, directions for future research, and managerial implications are also discussed.

Charitable assistance from nonprofits and charities plays an important role in helping vulnerable population relieve burdens, but current research provides limited evidence on the factors explaining the receipt of charitable assistance. This study constructs a conceptual framework and empirically tests three groups of factors—from the need, capital, and contextual perspectives—as the antecedents of charitable assistance using data from China. Multilevel logistic regression results show that having needs lays a foundation for charitable assistance, but capital and contextual factors are also important. Higher financial and social capital are associated with higher charitable assistance. Political and social capital strengthen the positive relationship between needs and charitable assistance. Economic development has a positive relationship with charitable assistance, while the relationship between government spending and charitable assistance is negative. This study suggests the inequality of receiving charitable assistance among the disadvantaged groups.

In response to the arrival of Ukrainians in March 2022, private homestay emerged as a key tool providing a flexible alternative to traditional reception systems. This paper explores the potential of homestays as a scalable model to address the accommodation needs of diverse refugee groups. We draw on a survey of 7,200 households in Germany and find that the majority of current and potential hosts express positive experiences of living together and willingness to continue offering accommodation. Despite relative preferences in favor of hosting female and Ukrainian refugees, there is still an absolute willingness to provide homestays to several nationalities in addition to Ukranians. However, reluctance to host male refugees shows not only the perseverance of threat perceptions but will likely prevent homestay from serving all refugee demographics at scale. Nevertheless, our study suggests that homestays could meaningfully complement existing reception systems beyond the initial focus on Ukrainians.

Volunteering can be a catalyst for career development, yet little is known about the specific skills event volunteers acquire or the personal and situational factors that shape these outcomes. This research assessed skill development in 545 volunteers at a major sporting event in North America. Using a mixed-methods approach, we analyzed qualitative and quantitative survey data. Qualitative analyses identified 12 skill themes divided equally into ‘soft skills’ (adaptability, communication, thinking, relationship building, work ethic/professionalism, and work management) and ‘hard skills’ (professional expertise, specific language and communication proficiency, knowledge of sport, management and operations, innovation and technology, and manual labor). Quantitative analyses revealed the total number of skills developed depended on volunteers' motives and levels of supervisor support. High supervisor support offset the effects of low motives on volunteer skill development.

Research illustrates that a donor’s identity can play a key role in how and to whom they donate. Yet, most research overlooks how racial identity and social context influence giving, particularly during a crisis. Our study examines how race-shaped crisis-relief donations related to the COVID-19 pandemic and the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement during 2020. We propose that donors will be more likely to donate to causes that mirror their identities, specifically their racial/ethnic identity, and when their donation benefits their racial and ethnic group. We use new donation and identity data from the 2020 Collaborative Post-Election Multi-Racial Survey to test identity-based giving during crisis. We find that Black and Asian Americans are more likely than White donors to donate to BLM and COVID-19 relief efforts in 2020, respectively. Black and Asian American donors are more likely than White donors to indicate their donations are made in support of their racial/ethnic group. Black and Asian donors who intend their gift to benefit their racial/ethnic group will be more likely to donate to these causes. The results support our hypotheses that a donor’s racial identity can play a role in deciding what causes to support, signaling that identity-based giving occurs during a crisis. This paper contributes to theory building around non-white donor behavior and holds practical implications for equity in nonprofit fundraising.

The paper aims to test why people from the general population intend to volunteer in the future. Our study tests empathy (affective and cognitive) as the intrinsic antecedent, satisfaction with life and meaning in life as the endocentric antecedents, and social value orientation as the ipsocentric antecedent of the intention to engage in volunteering. The paper is based on a 2-wave longitudinal online, questionnaire-based study (N = 566) performed on a general sample of Polish residents in May 2022 and May 2023. Results of structural equation modeling indicated that empathy at time 1 of the study predicted subsequent volunteering intention (when controlling for other variables in the model). Moreover, the volunteering intention at time 1 predicted social value orientation at time 2, and endocentric antecedents at time 1 negatively predicted empathy at time 2. The results suggest that concern for others and their welfare is the strongest factor associated with intentions to volunteer in the general population. Practitioners should consider that people with higher dispositional empathy might be the best targets for volunteer recruitment.

This article explores how grounded theory (GT) can advance nonprofit research by addressing its unique complexities and practice-oriented nature. While GT’s emphasis on developing theory directly from data makes it well suited for studying the dynamic nonprofit sector, its application has been constrained by conceptual ambiguity and methodological challenges. We clarify GT’s foundational principles, including emergence, theoretical sampling, constant comparison, and its evolving interpretations that influence the use of GT. Drawing on selected studies from leading nonprofit journals, we illustrate GT’s strengths in understanding complex dynamics, bridging theory and practice, capturing emerging trends, and refreshing established concepts and theories. We also provide practical guidance and strategies for overcoming challenges such as data access and methodological confusion. We conclude by emphasizing GT’s potential to advance nonprofit scholarship and practice and encouraging its broader adoption in nonprofit research.

LGBTQ+ organizations have a crucial dual role. They advocate and lobby for equality, while simultaneously providing vital services for LGBTQ+ communities. Different literatures provide perspectives on the hybridity of these organizations’ activities, highlighting the relation between political context and organizational capabilities. Yet, each body of literature emphasizes different elements. Building on key insights from nonprofit, social movement, and interest group literatures, this study investigates the contextual and organizational factors shaping the political and community-oriented activities of 294 LGBTQ+ organizations across 17 European Union countries. Using a unique dataset, it reveals that organizations faced with governmental repression reduce their political activities and increase their community-oriented activities. Organizational factors such reliance on membership fees and amount of funding sources have only a limited influence on organizations’ activities. These findings offer a more comprehensive understanding of how political and organizational contexts shape the work of LGBTQ+ organizations and emphasize the need for LGBTQ+ organizations to balance advocacy with community engagement, particularly in diverse and repressive environments.

This study investigates how emotional valence and emotional trajectory in donation-based crowdfunding messages influence actual donation behavior. Using a large dataset from two major crowdfunding platforms—GoFundMe and DonorSee—we apply automated sentiment analysis to examine two dimensions of emotional appeal: (1) mean emotional valence (positive or negative tone) and (2) emotional trajectory (the flow of valence over the course of a message). Results show that messages with overall negative valence and a positive emotional trajectory (i.e., shifting from negative to positive) were associated with greater donation amounts, supporting theories such as the expectancy-contrast model and the negative-state relief model. Further, we find that the interaction of these two dimensions significantly predicts donations on DonorSee, though not on GoFundMe, suggesting platform-level differences in emotional responsiveness. This study contributes to the literature by reconceptualizing emotional appeal as a dynamic construct and by offering new methodological tools to capture emotional progression in real-world narratives. It also provides practical implications for fundraisers seeking to craft more compelling campaign messages in increasingly saturated digital donation environments. By integrating emotional valence and emotional trajectory, this study advances a more comprehensive framework for understanding the mechanisms behind charitable giving in the era of peer-to-peer fundraising.

This study examines the relationship between famine exposure and individual philanthropic donations, drawing on data from the 2012 China Family Panel Survey and the 1982 Population Census of China. By analyzing the long-term impact of the 1959–1961 Chinese famine on survivors' donation behaviors, we aim to understand how such man-made severe life experiences influence philanthropic actions. We employed a cohort difference-in-difference method to assess the severity of famine exposure and its correlation with donation tendencies. Our results show a significant association between famine exposure and an increased likelihood of making donations, with political trust identified as a key channel. These findings contribute to the broader understanding of how historical and personal experiences shape philanthropic behavior, emphasizing the need for models of donor behavior that incorporate the lasting effects of traumatic events. This research not only provides valuable insights into the motivations behind individual donations but also highlights the importance of considering life course perspectives in the study of charitable donation behavior. By integrating historical trauma into our analysis, we offer a comprehensive view of the factors driving philanthropic actions, underscoring the enduring impact of early life experiences on charitable giving.

In Australia’s neoliberal context, volunteers play a crucial role in refugee settlement but face significant challenges despite their intercultural skills. Neoliberal outsourcing of social welfare work to volunteers and NGOs not only undermines the altruistic essence of volunteerism but also transforms it into a tool for cost-cutting and social service privatisation. The undervaluation of volunteers’ work, due to difficulties in measuring their skills within Australia’s labour framework, leads to their contributions being underappreciated. Moreover, resource constraints within the neoliberal environment hinder adequate support and professional development opportunities for volunteers. The outsourcing of volunteers by NGOs exacerbates power imbalances, as volunteers become dependent on NGOs, which exert significant control over their work. This dynamic embeds a power differential, where volunteers are beholden to the mechanisms of state and institutional power that control resources, messaging, and accountability. Tensions and ideological disparities also arise between paid employees and volunteers. Furthermore, the study underscores how NGOs’ accountability to donors may compromise their autonomy and mission, diverting attention from addressing the needs of marginalised communities. The process of responsibilisation imposed by NGOs, aligning with donors’ priorities, imposes stringent rules and accountability on volunteers, potentially undermining their voice and autonomy. However, while the study criticised certain aspects of neoliberalism, it also recognised its encouragement and valorization of volunteering. It emphasises the need to invest in volunteers through fair compensation, proper training, monitoring, and policies to prevent exploitation, recognising their vital role alongside professionals in refugee settlement.

Technology is rapidly changing the world of philanthropy, providing organizations with new ways to raise funds and engage donors. One promising new development is the use of cause-related games to mobilize potential donors. Although gamification has long been used in fundraising, its effectiveness, especially for games that have philanthropic components but are not directly related to fundraising, calls for empirical examination. In this paper, we report findings from a study conducted in China. Using online snowball sampling, we recruited 1618 participants (effective sample size of 1586, comprising 41% males and 59% females). The results revealed that participation in cause-related games is significantly associated with an individual’s willingness to donate, and past donation and volunteer experiences moderate this relationship. These findings shed light on the potential mechanism through which cause-related games can influence potential donors, which has significant implications for theory and practice.

Nonprofit organizations (NPOs) have a moral obligation to act in the public interest and are thus expected to lead by example in transparency. Yet, by focusing on the benefits that NPOs derive from being transparent (i.e., the instrumental approach), prior literature has tended to neglect the view of transparency as a moral responsibility regardless of the associated benefits (i.e., the normative approach). We suggest that embracing a normative approach may enable a more comprehensive conceptualization and operationalization of NPO transparency. Based on a systematic literature review, this study conceptualizes NPO transparency as a three-dimensional construct, comprising completeness, accessibility, and inferability. Such conceptualization is then translated into an extensive transparency index that NPOs, with sufficient staff and resources, can use to monitor their practices. Finally, we assess the appropriateness of the conceptualization and the index through a content analysis of 432 NPO websites in Belgium. By highlighting inferability as an important but understudied dimension, we contribute to a more comprehensive normative understanding of NPO transparency.

In Central Europe, people trust each other less than in Western European countries. According to the common approach to volunteering, this should also mean fewer volunteers available. Our research examines whether two forms of volunteering—formal and informal—compete for engaged individuals in Central Europe. On a sample of 2,034 respondents from Czechia, Hungary, Poland, and Slovakia, we analyzed by structural equation model on how social capital and human capital influence wealth and time availability in relation to formal and informal volunteering. Our findings show that the two forms of volunteering do not compete but rather complement each other. Additionally, income has a stronger influence on both formal and informal volunteering than time availability. Furthermore, formal volunteering appears to be more sensitive to fluctuations in the availability of financial resources and time among potential volunteers, confirming resource theory.

Partnerships between international and local NGOs (INGOs and LNGOs) have often been analysed using principal–agent theory, where INGOs treat LNGOs as implementing agents and control their actions. The paper examines how LNGOs can improve their agency in these relationships to create more equal partnerships and thus greater local ownership. We propose a framework in which LNGOs can draw on material, organizational and ideational sources of power to improve their agency. The framework is applied to a case of a peacebuilding project in Nigeria’s farmer–herder conflict. The project was run by an INGO in partnership with two Nigerian LNGOs. The LNGOs had rather different experiences of the partnership. The paper argues that these are explained by differences in their organizational power and how this power was enhanced by ideational power. Material power mattered, but did not play a central role. The findings show that LNGOs can enhance their positions in partnerships if they have effective internal policies and procedures, local and contextual knowledge, and can frame these strategically.

Men’s Sheds are unique community-based mutual-aid not-for-profit membership organisations, which aim to use activities such as craftwork to improve men’s health. While the Men’s Sheds movement appears to be growing, with Sheds in Africa, Europe, Oceania and North America, there is limited understanding of what makes a thriving Shed or membership association more widely. This paper uses in-depth qualitative interviews with committee members of Men’s Sheds in Western Australia to uncover what makes a thriving Shed. The findings reveal that the key factors relate to having an inclusive governance, an inclusive space for activities, supportive networks, and sufficient resources. Overall, a thriving shed is one where members feel included. The paper proposes a framework for a thriving Men’s Shed and offers insights for other membership associations.

Understanding the factors that predict volunteer retention is critical for the sustainability of nonprofit organizations (NPOs), but the determinants of volunteer permanence still require research. This study investigates the utility of the Three-Stage Model of Volunteers’ Duration of Service (3SMVDS) in predicting volunteer retention after 5 months and compares its explanatory performance to that of the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB). Through path analysis, we assess each model's ability to predict volunteer retention after a 5-month period. The data analysis from 271 Spanish novice volunteers yields significant insights. The findings indicate that the 3SMVDS is more effective than the TPB in predicting actual volunteer retention at the 5-month mark, although it presents some theoretical discrepancies with the original model. These results underscore the complexity of volunteer retention and encourages a more sophisticated theoretical understanding that could guide the development of targeted interventions for NPOs to enhance volunteer engagement and retention.

This manuscript explores cross-sectoral social partnerships (CSSPs) through a four-tiered model highlighting tensions within individual organizations, between two or more players, within the new partnership and between that newly formed entity and the stakeholders it addresses. We draw insights from and develop the model according to the existing literature. We then provide examples of tensions in each of the four levels based on our case study of a Romanian CSSP formed in response to the Ukrainian refugee crisis beginning in 2022.

This article explores the growing forms of collaboration between volunteers and professionals within the Italian refugee reception system through the lens of boundary work—an ongoing process of reciprocal demarcation and self-reflexivity that positions them in synergy, tension, or mutual opposition. Drawing on 33 qualitative interviews conducted at Italian reception facilities employing both volunteer and paid staff, this study explains why volunteers are welcomed in these settings. Volunteers are expected and willing to build authentic and unique relationships with migrants, expanding opportunities for housing, employment, and training, while extending care beyond the temporal and spatial boundaries of institutional reception, softening the disciplinary logic characterizing these contexts. However, we show that the boundaries between professional and volunteer care logics and practices are also carefully monitored and managed in the pursuit of a mutually beneficial diversity. These efforts are aimed at preventing care from becoming an overly individualized endeavour that could undermine bureaucratic, rights-based standards of equity and foster dependency rather than autonomy among refugees. This analysis highlights the perceived opportunities and risks of collaboration between volunteers and professionals in these contexts, contributing to a deeper understanding of the functioning and outcomes of refugee reception systems.