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Volunteer stereotypes, stigma, and relational identity projects

Mary Ho (Business School, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK)
Stephanie O’Donohoe (Business School, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK)

European Journal of Marketing

ISSN: 0309-0566

Article publication date: 6 May 2014

3197

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to seek to enhance the understanding of non-profit marketing and consumer identities by exploring volunteering as a form of symbolic consumption. Specifically, it seeks to examine how young people – both volunteers and non-volunteers – understand and relate to volunteer stereotypes, and how they manage stigma in negotiating their social identities in relation to volunteering.

Design/methodology/approach

Grounded in consumer culture theory, the study uses mixed qualitative methods, incorporating focus groups, paired and individual interviews and a projective drawing task.

Findings

Five volunteering-related stereotypes were identified: the older charity shop worker, the sweet singleton, the environmental protestor, the ordinary volunteer and the non-volunteer. Participants related to positive and negative attributes of these stereotypes in different ways. This led volunteers and non-volunteers to engage in a range of impression management strategies, some of which bolstered their own identities by stigmatising other groups.

Research limitations/implications

The sample was drawn from 39 individuals aged 16-24 years and living in Scotland.

Practical implications

Because stereotypes are acknowledged as a major barrier to volunteering, particularly among young people, a greater understanding of how these stereotypes are understood and negotiated can assist non-profit marketers in recruiting and retaining volunteers.

Originality/value

This paper draws on theories of consumer culture and stigma to explore volunteering as a form of symbolic consumption, examines volunteering stereotypes among both volunteers and non-volunteers and uses multiple qualitative methods to facilitate articulation of young people’s experiences in this area.

Keywords

Citation

Ho, M. and O’Donohoe, S. (2014), "Volunteer stereotypes, stigma, and relational identity projects", European Journal of Marketing, Vol. 48 No. 5/6, pp. 854-877. https://doi.org/10.1108/EJM-11-2011-0637

Publisher

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Emerald Group Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2014, Emerald Group Publishing Limited

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