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The Politics of Volunteering

ISBN: 978-0-745-66956-4

September 2013

Polity

200 pages

Description

Many of us may have participated in grassroots groups, changing the world in small and big ways, from building playgrounds and feeding the homeless, to protesting wars and ending legal segregation. Beyond the obvious fruits of these activities, what are the broader consequences of volunteering for the participants, recipients of aid, and society as a whole?

In this engaging new book, Nina Eliasoph encourages readers to reflect on their own experiences in civic associations as an entry point into bigger sociological, political, and philosophical issues, such as class inequality, how organizations work, differences in political systems around the globe, and the sources of moral selfhood. Claims about volunteering tend to be astronomical: it will create democracy, make you a better person, eliminate poverty, protect local cultures, and even prevent illness. Eliasoph cuts through these assertions by drawing on empirical studies, key data, real-life case studies, and a range of theoretical analyses.

In doing so, the book provides students of sociology, political science, and communications studies with a framework for evaluating the role of civic associations in social and political life, as well as in their own lives as active citizens.

About the Author
Nina Eliasoph is associate professor of sociology at the University of Southern California. Her previous books include Making Volunteers and Avoiding Politics.
Features
  • A readily accessible and highly engaging overview of the role individuals can play in the bigger political picture
  • Provides a critical intervention on the connections between volunteering/grassroots action and the wider political sphere
  • Constructs a framework for evaluating the role of civic associations in social and political life, as well as in the lives of individual active citizens
  • Draws on empirical studies, key data, and real-life case studies, from encouraging urban cycling, to protesting against war and injustice