Good deeds revisited: motivation and boundary spanning in formal volunteering

Abstract

The study investigates the motivation of volunteers to serve at the Federal Association of German Food Banks and volunteers' interactions with food donors, food pantry managers and users. Social exchange theory is used as a frame to investigate volunteers' interactions in the context of boundary spanning. Twenty in-depth interviews were recorded, transcribed and analyzed through qualitative content analysis. Volunteers are predominantly socially motivated to work at the German Food Bank, but this is not necessarily reflected all their interactions with food pantry users. Even though the authority in these interactions rests with the volunteers, they still feel uncomfortable in some interactions. Volunteers' interactions with managers are essential, because managers tell volunteers, which tasks to carry out in which manner. But the volunteers do not necessarily respect the instructions in all cases. The interaction with food donors are negatively affected through a mismatch in the perception of authority within the collaboration. In some interactions, both parties believe they have authority within the interaction, even though they are rather equal partners. The study provides best practice recommendations on how to train volunteers to avoid interaction problems with food pantry users and donors.

Sustainability Challenges and Innovations in the Value Chain of Flowering Potted Plants for the German Market

“…In the current study, interviews were conducted, using a semi-structured interview guide. Semi-structured interviews were chosen, because they allow exploring different issues systematically, without compromising the ability of interviewees to freely express themselves [53,57].…”

Cross-sector collaboration and nonprofit boundary work for female workers in developing countries: evidence from Bangladesh

“…Subsequently, nonprofit boundary work shares important similarities with other forms of collaborative boundary work because it exposes the attempts of implementers to negotiate and organize for bridges or junctures that can enable tight cooperation and facilitate collaborative outcomes (Quick and Feldman, 2014; Shrum, 1990). Similar to Langley et al’ s (2019) collaborative boundary work, implementers continuously negotiate in groups and increase their organization’s ability to respond to environmental complexity (Gulzar and Henry, 2005; Rombach et al , 2018; P. Williams, 2002). Thus, they influence the collaboration over time, depending on the tasks and relationships they share and foster (Leung, 2013).…”

“…Holmes and Smart (2009), for instance, differentiate between formal managers who officially pursue interorganizational practices to advance social causes from nonmandated conduits or self-appointed implementers who informally support these causes by searching for new ideas. The example of the German Food Bank System presented by Rombach et al (2018) showcases the function of volunteers who join NGOs to add “social, cultural and human capital” (p. 107). Still, Masuda et al (2018) find that the inclusion of informal NGO implementers helps diffuse innovations.…”

“…While boundary work as a sociological concept broadly reflects the “practices through which groups, occupations and organizations work at boundaries to develop and sustain patterns of collaboration” (Langley et al , 2019, p. 714), nonprofit boundary work is introduced here to denote the practices exclusively performed by boundary-spanning implementing members (hereinafter implementers) of nonprofit organizations, predominantly nongovernment organizations (NGOs). These individuals operate in groups to directly train and negotiate with personnel from partnering organizations, traversing their own organization’s perimeters to remedy social problems (Holmes and Smart, 2009; Isbell, 2012; Leung, 2013; Rombach et al , 2018). Notably, nonprofit boundary work differs from other forms of boundary work because it acknowledges the existence of multiple dimensions of the agency during the collaboration that is not exclusively associated with implementers and needs to be identified empirically (Friedman and Podolny, 1992).…”

Voluntariado en educación superior como base para el desarrollo profesional de los docentes

“…International volunteerism has also increased in the context of globalization (Lough & Tiessen, 2018). Although volunteerism is self-imposed, several researchers emphasize the need for training to improve its efficiency (Rombach, Kang, & Bitsch, 2018); Dawson, Baker, & Dowell (2019). Future volunteers' training is a prerequisite for their efficiency.…”