The Center for Research on Civil Society and the Voluntary Sector has approximately every 4-5 years conducted extensive surveys of the population's voluntary efforts and the composition, scope, and economy of the organizational community. This forms a valuable basis for comparison with new data to map the consequences of the coronavirus pandemic.
This project conducted new surveys in 2022 and 2023 of voluntary efforts and the organizational landscape in ways that allowed for such comparisons. The purpose was to give indications of which weaknesses are temporary and where more lasting changes have occurred. This provided information during the pandemic about what measures authorities, organizations, and umbrella organizations could implement to counteract problems and contribute to renewed activity.
Research Questions
The research project will answer the following overarching questions:
- How and to what extent has the economy of voluntary organizations been affected by the pandemic?
- What kind of consequences has the pandemic had for dropout and recruitment of members and volunteers, as well as the visibility of organizations?
- How has the interaction between volunteering, the business sector, and the public sector been affected by the coronavirus pandemic?
The project was conducted at the Center for Research on Civil Society and the Voluntary Sector, which is a collaboration between researchers from the Institute for Social Research in Oslo and NORCE in Bergen, and it was funded by the Ministry of Culture.
Reporting
The reports from 2022 and 2023 present findings that can say something about how the pandemic affected voluntary work, membership, and voluntary organizations in the short and medium term. An article was also written about the voluntary organizations' involvement in and influence on public policy during the coronavirus pandemic, which was published in the Norwegian Political Science Journal in 2022.
Norwegian data from the project were also used in comparisons with ten other countries through the project Global Generosity in Times of Crisis, coordinated by Pamala Wiepking at Indiana University. A Norwegian report was made with data presented according to a common project template. Then a comparative report was made with data from all eleven countries. In addition, some learning points and recommendations from the comparisons were published in the Journal of Philanthropy and Marketing.
To see the publications and media coverage that the project has resulted in, please visit the Norwegian project page.
