Lars Skov Henriksen

Formal and Informal Volunteering in a Nordic Context: the Case of Denmark

This article compares three different forms of volunteering: formal volunteering which is typically carried out in formalized organizations; informal practical help which is most often provided in a face-to-face context and requires the giving of time; and economic assistance which requires neither the co-presence of actors nor the giving of time. The different nature and structuring of these formal and informal ways of contributing to society suggest that they require different resources. Grounded in sociological theory we argue that three sets of factors are particularly relevant for explaining volunteering: personal or ‘human capital’ factors, social network resources, and civic values. We test in a multivariate analysis how various indicators of these personal and social resources relate to the different forms of volunteering. The study relies on a comprehensive survey of the Danish adult population. The findings, therefore, are interpreted in the light of this particular institutional environment which forms the backdrop for individual choices about volunteering. We find that the different forms of formal and informal volunteering seem to form a continuum of civic engagement going from the most public to the most private. Furthermore, compared to informal ways of volunteering, formal volunteering seems to be more contingent upon access to and supply of different forms of personal and social resources.

Volunteering and Social Activism: : Moving beyond the Traditional Divide

This article introduces the special issue of the Journal of Civil Society on ‘volunteering and social activism’. We think research and the scholarly debate on civil society for too long have ignored important research questions that start at the crossroads of the ideal types of the ‘altruistic volunteer’ and the ‘political activist’. Behind the idea of pulling together a special issue was an ambition to open up an avenue for research and dialogue between two research traditions that, in our opinion, have had too little inspiring effect on each other. The special issue includes four articles that all raise important challenges to the impression of volunteering and social activism as separate and disconnected forms of civic engagement.

The Invention and Institutionalization of Volunteer Centers A Comparative Analysis of Norway and Denmark

This article presents and explains differences in governmental implementation strategies of volunteer centers in Norway and Denmark. In the first part, we describe the emergence of centers, focusing on shifting policies and governmental initiatives. The second part aims at explaining the observed variations. First, we found that the functions of the centers were strongly affected by centralistic trends in Danish social policy in contrast to a broader acceptance of local welfare variations in Norway. Second, we found that Danish centers managed to establish a national umbrella organization, while the Norwegian centers lacked a national coordinating unit. Third, an independent legal form in which local associations are members may have helped Danish centers bring about a sense of local ownership. In Norway, volunteer centers had weak ties to other local voluntary associations and were at times perceived as a threat to them.

On the Road Towards Marketization? A Comparative Analysis of Nonprofit Sector Involvement in Social Service Delivery at the Local Level

Nonprofit–government relations in social service provision constitute a widely overlooked topic of both public administration and welfare state research. Referring to the regime approach of welfare state research, the chapter identifies distinctive models of cooperation between nonprofits and local governments. With a focus on a selection of countries—Denmark, Germany, and the UK—which stand for very different welfare regimes and traditions of local governance, changes in the welfare mix of local social service provision are analyzed that are the outcome of processes of adaptation to a significantly changed local environment. Results of the case studies are summarized in the concluding section which highlights trends of convergence as well as path-dependent developments that correspond to the traditions of the respective welfare state regimes.

Voluntary organisations and local government: lessons from a Danish case study

The purpose of this article is to analyse the changing relationships between local government and voluntary organisations in the decentralised Danish welfare state within the field of social policy. Here major changes in public discourse have brought voluntary organisations more to the forefront in a welfare state model whose distinct public character might be fading. However, little attention has been devoted to potential problems resulting from intensified co-operation. The article explores these issues using evidence from a case study of the links between public authorities and seven voluntary organisations in the city of Aalborg in northern Jutland. This case study raises the question of whether voluntary organisations, as argued in public debate, can generally be regarded as the antithesis of the bureaucratically and paternalistically organised public social services. Rather, they seem to be co-actors, actively constructing new paradigms and practices in social policy, that cannot be captured in conventional dichotomous models. This suggests that the public bureaucracy versus altruistic voluntary organisation, or distinctions usually made between professional and volunteer motives, may be of limited use.

Mainstreaming Effects on Volunteering?: The Case of Denmark

Abstract The aim of this article is to investigate whether and to what extent changes in the structural preconditions for volunteering have had an effect on the relative importance of ‘classic predictors’ of volunteering within two areas: (1) socio-economic and status variables that function as resources for civic engagement and (2) value orientations that guide volunteering. Arguably, upward changes in the level of human capital, such as education, or changes in values that put more emphasis on, for example, social responsibility, could be expected to lead to an increase in the relative importance of these variables because the groups who possess such resources or express such attitudes would be more likely to enter into the volunteer labour force. If this is the case, then we would expect to see increasing differences in the likelihood of volunteering between high- and low-status groups. On the other hand, it could be argued that it is the distribution and diffusion of such resources and values that matter. If, for instance, education has become more widespread and covers larger proportions of the population, it is also possible that the relative importance of education has diminished. In this case, we would see a mainstreaming effect on volunteering because this activity becomes more normal, independent of class and status. Finally, it is also possible that volunteering is relatively resistant to wider structural changes in society or at least experience a time lag in the effect of such changes. Based on an empirical analysis of Danish survey data from 1990 to 2008, we argue that the idea of a mainstreaming effect should be taken seriously.

Understanding Civic Engagement in the Scandinavian Context

This chapter provides an introduction to civic engagement in Scandinavia. The chapter accounts for the institutional background of the popular mass movements, the welfare state and the negotiated market economies in the Scandinavian countries. We argue that the combination of these institutions feed into a combination of supply and demand mechanisms that are necessary to comprehend in order to understand not only the levels of civic engagement but also the structure and composition of the organized parts of civil society. Further, we discuss the internal variations between the Scandinavian civil societies and the most important challenges for civil society and voluntary associations in this context. Finally, we provide an overview of the logic and structure of this book.

The Scandinavian Organizational Landscape: Extensive and Different

This chapter describes the historical and institutional background of the Scandinavian organizational society in detail. The popular mass movements are analysed as core institutions in the building of the modern Scandinavian mass democracies. Particular attention is devoted to the organizational model that characterized the popular mass movements and their organizations. In this model, local members played a decisive role. Another characteristic feature is the vertical integration between local branch organizations and regional and national organizations that provided a communication channel from the local level to the national level and vice versa. The chapter also provides an overview of the density, structure and composition of the Scandinavian voluntary sectors and demonstrates the lasting dominance of the sport, culture and leisure fields, though the welfare field is becoming more important in all countries. Finally, the decreasing significance of membership and member-based associations, in particular in Norway and Denmark, is analysed. This development may be consequential for the historically strong political and democratic role of voluntary associations and for their position more in general in society.

Comparative and Theoretical Lessons from the Scandinavian Case

In the final chapter, we provide an overview and synthesis of the main findings following our analysis of civic engagement across the Scandinavian countries. Furthermore, we speculate on the theoretical lessons from the Scandinavian experience, which may be important for an international comparative understanding of the varieties of civic engagement and civil society. We pay special attention to the embeddedness of civic engagement within the organizational society and within wider societal structures.