Let's Keep the Momentum Going: Understanding Volunteering Motives

In a study published in 2020, titled Motives for Volunteering in the Saudi Community, Social Researcher Dr. Nayef Al-Jaber found that the strongest motives of the Saudi people are doing good deeds, helping others, and gaining experience. Accordingly, charities get the lion's share of volunteers. Dr. Al-Jaber believes that tourism, technical, or sports volunteering should focus on enhancing the experience of volunteers in order to attract and motivate them since helping others and being rewarded may not fully or directly motivate volunteers.

These insights are based on serious research and studies. They are necessary because understanding volunteering motives is key to motivating volunteers to adequately carry out the tasks assigned to them in a way that guarantees satisfaction and enthusiasm to volunteer in the future. Vision 2030, launched by His Royal Highness Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in 2016, has led the nation to advance in leaps and bounds through the numerous initiatives and projects that contribute to a better future. The Vision has mainly worked on activating the citizen’s role in evolving the society and giving back, whether through formal labor or volunteering. Modern societies have three main pillars that contribute to growth and development, namely, the government and private sectors, and the non-profit sector which is essentially characterized by volunteer work.

Therefore, the non-profit sector has a great responsibility to actively and seriously contribute to growing our beloved country. This is only possible through sincere efforts, hard work, and an attractive and fruitful environment.

Volunteer work is driven by motives and desires, as the Prophet, may peace be upon him, said, "Actions are (judged) according to intentions, and every man shall have what he intended." Motives and intentions are the cornerstones of change in this world. Internal motives and external incentives encourage people to volunteer. Therefore, it is crucial to adequately understand the published studies and research explaining volunteering motives and push volunteers to embrace the right values.

Therefore, one may ask: Why is it important to uncover the motives for volunteers if we already achieve high volunteering rates?

We would like to stress that examining the motives for volunteering will guarantee the quantitative and qualitative expansion of the volunteer pool to comprise areas where volunteering is still limited, such as technical and vocational volunteering that Vision 2030 seeks to include. Moreover, strengthening these motives and embedding volunteer values will foster a sense of belonging to the workplace and effective participation, and will clear out any doubts of exploitation. Understanding volunteering motives supports the decision-making process and formulating adequate policies and legislation will contribute to the design of innovative opportunities that activate the role of volunteering and attract volunteers.

Subjective and personal motives cannot be the key driving force of true volunteering. However, these motives should be taken into consideration because they are a form of self-motivation. This may be reflected in the urge to volunteer to record the highest number of hours through the volunteering platform, obtain certificates, or seek job promotions. These indicators may not benefit the sustainability of volunteering or serious and fruitful giving. Perhaps a volunteer organization's biggest mistake is applying the method used by non-profit organizations to manage volunteer efforts, such as enforcing a specific number of volunteering hours for the employee or student, even though volunteering is optional.

Understanding the motives for volunteering and steering them in the right direction is the best solution. Therefore, some experts have presented theories to identify and benefit from the motives of volunteers.  J.R. Kidd's famous theory, in which he discusses internal and external factors related to motivation, clarifies these motives. Internal factors include the search for various opportunities, fun experiences, and activities, in addition to the need for self-satisfaction and social interaction. As for external motives, Kidd addressed the desire to be productive and the need for all forms of verbal and moral encouragement. Another motive-related theory often mentioned in volunteer literature is that of Fitch, in which he refers to three categories of motives: benevolence, ego satisfaction, and social interaction. Benevolence is the desire to help others, ego satisfaction is manifested through improved skills, knowledge, and self-esteem, and social motives are reflected in social affiliations and activities. (Utah Arts Council Publication, 2006)

These theories have shown that the motives for volunteering may be internal and external. Legislators and volunteering managers in various organizations across the Kingdom must always keep these motives in mind to facilitate the development of real and effective volunteering opportunities in community service, rather than just focusing on the number of volunteers and the work hours recorded, which are not a true reflection of volunteering. I believe that decision-makers and volunteering institutions must adopt and disseminate the culture of true values through legislation and policies that encourage volunteering by educating the community and the youth in particular on the impact and benefits of volunteering on individuals and society, in addition to instilling a sense of patriotism through curricula, platforms, and communication and media channels, which promote good deeds, giving back and helping others, as well as patriotism and social responsibility to contribute to the country's progress. 

There are different stages for volunteering. The first stage is fostering a volunteering culture and guiding individuals to practice and engage in this noble act, regardless of the intentions or motives of volunteers. This first step is sufficient, provided that volunteering strengthens these motives and directs them to the right path. Perhaps we can refer to important recommendations in understanding the motives for volunteering through the following points:

1. The predominance of personal interests and quick gains over community service and social responsibility in volunteer work during the current stage, is an indication of a weakness in one's sense of belonging. This is normal because individuals often seek basic needs before focusing on productivity and giving back. Therefore, basic needs, such as emotional and job security, should be met. A person seeking a job or promotion should not refer to volunteering.
2. Volunteering should not be limited to general volunteering, such as organization, distribution, rescue, and other types of volunteering that do not require a set of skills, according to the three categories of volunteering: general, skilled, and professional. Since general volunteering is more common than skilled and professional volunteering, we can conclude that this noble act is more about taking than giving, which means it focuses on service without receiving any real benefit, such as training, acquiring a new skill, or learning something new. Therefore, people resort to participation without any incentives or motivation. Volunteering should become a platform for developing and acquiring skills, such as communication and teamwork, in addition to becoming an opportunity to increase one's knowledge and skills, which will enrich experiences and capabilities.
3. Schools and universities do not play a role in enhancing the value of volunteering due to the lack of courses that inform students and motivate them to volunteer. They also fail to offer top-quality volunteering opportunities and lack supervision and follow-up.

Resources: 

Brochure on the motives of volunteering in Saudi society.  Dr. Nayef Hamad Al-Jaber (2020)

The Palestinian Counseling Center - Asmaa Sharbati Eid (2009)