Keywords

1 Introduction

In 2015, the United Nations General Assembly adopted the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development [1], in which volunteer groups were explicitly identified as stakeholders in the achievement of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This collection of 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs, also known as the Global Goals) aims to end poverty, inequality, injustice and climate change by 2030.

Volunteering is a part of every civilization and society and comes in all forms, from traditional mutual aid practices to organized community action in times of crisis. Today, given the prevalent global problems, the need for organized volunteering is greater than ever. Volunteering is an essential element of civil society initiatives, and volunteers are an important human resource for third-sector organizations. One of the key principles on which volunteering is based is the belief that global change begins with local change, that economic and social progress does not begin at the top, but at the local and at the broadest level. In volunteer projects, the focus is on achieving positive change at the local level, addressing specific and concrete problems in the community, especially involving citizens, community residents in the project: from conception to implementation.

Examples of volunteer activities can be found in all sectors of society in almost all sociodemographic categories [2]. Since there is no monetary compensation, it is important to understand volunteer motivation as the key to organization’s success and effectiveness. Altruistic motives are characteristic of volunteers who are not interested in personal benefits obtained by providing unpaid services [3]. Basically, altruism is the contribution of time, energy and resources to an organization with the sole purpose of helping others. While altruism is often cited as the primary motivation for volunteering, it is widely believed that serving others is mutually beneficial for both the provider and recipient [4].

The peculiarity of volunteering is that it is not limited by external factors, such as earning a salary, gaining prestige or social status, or earning job rewards, but rather by internal motivations and causes. Accepting the responsibility of volunteering is different from accepting paid work because the volunteer does the work of his choice according to his kinship, decides to volunteer voluntarily, there is no coercion, there is no authorization, and it is not done to secure their interests and their own existence. Precisely because volunteering is based on freedom of choice, the basic premise of which is free will, which, among other things, is a very personal thing.

Bussell and Forbes [5] suggest that additional research is needed to improve understanding of volunteer motivation. Previous research has shown that individuals are willing to engage in volunteering, but there is still insufficient understanding of the motivational factors that motivate individuals and culturally diverse groups to serve their communities [6].

With regards to the previously mentioned, it is clear that research into the possibility of motivating volunteers to approach and perform various activities is a very challenging phenomenon, with significant practical, theoretical and social contributions. One of the very much established theoretical models within social marketing, which can serve as a fundamental model for studying volunteer motivation is the Motivation-Opportunity-Ability (MOA) model. The MOA model is a well-established framework used as a theoretical basis for explaining job performance in employee behavior [4, 7], consumer choice [8], and decision-making [9].

The MOA model is a useful framework in the context of social marketing. It has been suggested that social marketing and MOA approaches provide a useful complementary approach to interventions targeting social issues. The proposal advocates the MOA approach as an overarching guiding model for social marketing programs and provides the basis for a comprehensive strategy for interventions targeting social issues, including volunteerism [10].

The fundamental study challenge that this paper begins with is the subject of how social marketing motivates young people to volunteer, and whether using the MOA model of social marketing is important for increasing the number of young volunteers. In this regard, the study’s goals are to examine the characteristics of social marketing strategies (MOA model) used by NGOs in Bosnia and Herzegovina, as well as to determine how and to what degree their implementation influences the number of volunteers.

As an important stakeholder in the development of civil society in Bosnia and Herzegovina, civil society operates in an inactive economy. The community’s attitude toward problems is passive. Politics, government, and economics are now in charge. Civil society organizations represent and promote the values and norms of modern democratic societies in a society with a relatively low level of trust. Despite their dedication to improving the lives of those they work with and successfully contributing to the public good, these organizations have little influence in the process of drafting, deciding, and implementing legislation for the benefit of their members.

The presented MOA model study poses a useful explorative research about volunteering activities in Bosnia and Herzegovina, providing a good starting point in understanding motivation for young people’s engagement in volunteerism.

2 Literature Review

The role and significance of non-profit organizations in society became interesting in the late twentieth century as part of a more intensive study of the relationship between the three fundamental determinants of any modern society: state (government), community of people, and markets, as seen through their tasks and responsibilities [11]. Civil society was defined as a normatively privileged arena or sphere outside the state in which organizations and individuals interact independently and apart from political and economic logics. Civil society was a privileged arena for social critique and dissent, which needed to be nurtured not only as a democratizing force in authoritarian regimes, but also to keep democracy alive in Western Europe. A thriving civil society became the defining feature of a well-functioning liberal, representative, parliamentary democracy [12].

This shift, driven by the donor agencies’ neoliberal project, also privileges the type of role that NGOs as civil society organizations are expected to play, the type of engagement they are to have with other civil society formations, the state, and the market. As a result, the name change has the potential to promote a depoliticized version of social action while weakening civil society’s ability to pursue radical ideas of social change; striking at the fundamental structure of society or the way the state relates to its people [13]. As they began to subscribe to the notions of civil society associated with this concept in its neoliberal incarnation, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) began to refer to themselves as civil society organizations. According to Walzer [14], these organizations exist in an unforced realm of human existence where social affairs are conducted without reference to or interference from the state or market. Thus, civil society organizations are accepted as a sphere in which communitarian spirits are grown and nurtured, where differences - structural, cultural, ideological - are dissolved, boundaries are blurred, and human beings come to share fellow feeling and warmth of togetherness and unforced sociability [13].

The definition of non-profit organizations provided by John Hopkins University’s Centre for Civil Society Studies, a pioneer in the study of non-profit organizations, states that NPOs have five indicators. All of the indicators mentioned here are related to the organizational dimensions of civil society rather than the process or value-oriented dimensions [15]:

  • They are organized, i.e. they possess some institutional reality.

  • They are private, i.e. they are institutionally separate from the government.

  • They are non-profit distributing, i.e. they do not return the money that has been generated to their owners or directors.

  • They are self-governing, i.e. they are capable of controlling their own activities.

  • They are at least partially voluntary, implying a significant degree of voluntary participation, either in the actual conduct of the agency’s activities or in the management of its affairs.

The authors of this report, also noted that “Quite clearly, this definition of the nonprofit sector goes well beyond the NGOs concept in common usage within the development world. It comes closer to what more recently come to be referred as “civil society organizations”, i.e. organizations that function outside the market and the state, though this latter concept is far less widely utilized or understood” [13, p. 21].

According to the above comprehensive definition of NGOs, one of the most important aspects of their work is based on voluntary participation. In fact, non-profit organizations rely on volunteers to reach a larger population than they could with a limited number of employees alone [16]. Volunteers frequently assist nonprofits in providing needed programs and services. The diversity and complexity of non-profit organizations available among communities represents the need for volunteers to be skilled, trained and experienced in a number of aspects. Therefore, nonprofit managers should understand the important role of volunteers in a nonprofit organization and have the necessary knowledge on how to hire, manage, and retain them. The right approach to volunteers can mean the difference between active, committed volunteers or constant change that disrupts the organization’s programs and morale. Volunteerism research has academic and practical value because the nature of volunteerism is perceived as a vehicle for achieving sustainable development. Volunteering allows people to participate in their own development and peacekeeping, while also strengthening social cohesion and trust by encouraging individual and collective action, resulting in long-term development for people by people. Volunteering’s contribution to sustainable development is especially striking in the context of the new SDGs because it allows people to become responsible actors in their own development as well as being active models of change.

2.1 Volunteerism

Because religion, politics, and culture all have a strong influence on the concept of volunteerism [17], there is no universally accepted definition of volunteerism in the existing literature. Furthermore, despite the fact that volunteerism has been the subject of numerous studies, an integrated theory of volunteering has yet to emerge [18]. According to Wilson [19], the lack of a theory of volunteering can be explained by the fact that the generic term “volunteering” encompasses a wide range of very different activities, ranging from voluntary participation in sports associations or schools to helping people with disabilities or the elderly, preventing an attempt to explain all of these activities by the same theory. Volunteering is essentially a commitment to a specific goal without the expectation of monetary compensation. According to the definition of volunteerism provided by the United Nations General Assembly [20], first, the action should be performed voluntarily, according to an individual’s own free will, rather than as an obligation imposed by law, contract, or academic requirement. Second, the action should not be undertaken solely for monetary gain. Third, the action should be for the common good, benefiting people outside the family or household directly or indirectly, or a cause, even if the person volunteering usually benefits as well. In addition, two other factors should be mentioned [21]: (1) Volunteering implies active participation, implying that the act of volunteering entails active participation or contributions of time, energy, or talents. It is never seen as a donation or sponsorship of financial or material resources. (2) Volunteering is voluntary. Individuals freely give their time, energy, and talents for whatever reason they choose.

According to Shah et al. [22] there are two types of volunteerism: informal and formal volunteerism. Formal volunteering is carried out by a group or organization and is structured and embedded in NGO programs. Individuals engage in informal volunteering to assist a fellow community member in need. Govo [23] defines informal volunteerism as “participating in some activities outside of the purview of a formal organization.” Structured or formal volunteerism makes a significant contribution to development [24].

Regardless of the differences in definitions and types of volunteerism, it is important to note that the modern view of volunteering is characterized by a two-way process in which each party involved receives certain benefits, and it can be said that volunteering is the creator of human and social capital, i.e. an important factor influencing the improvement of social cohesion and one of the strongest elements contributing to the development of society. The 2011 UNV (United Nations Volunteers) report confirms this, stating that volunteering contributes to sustainable development by engaging people at all levels of society, influencing major changes in the community, and promoting social inclusion and the environment for sustainable development. According to the report, societies that value diversity show signs of social and societal development [25].

The EU Commission declared 2011 the European Year of Volunteering, emphasizing the importance of volunteering today. Citizens volunteer in various organizations, including civil society organizations, youth clubs, hospitals, schools, and sports clubs, among others. The EU Commission acknowledged the value of volunteering, emphasizing that it is an active expression of civic participation that strengthens common European values such as solidarity and social cohesion. Furthermore, volunteering provides significant learning opportunities, as participation in volunteering activities can help people develop new skills and abilities, as well as improve their employability. Volunteering has been recognized by the EU Commission, which has included volunteering in the Europe 2020 strategy - a strategy for smart, sustainable, and inclusive development [26].

Recognizing and legitimizing the importance and impact of volunteers is critical for analyzing and understanding their activity, as well as the factors that may influence them in the future. Understanding this process could lead to more efficient design of volunteer attraction and retention policies and statements in non-profit organizations [27]. It is critical to consider the opportunity that each organization provides volunteers to capitalize their skills and abilities in order to meet their expectations, which are shaped to a large extent by their motivations [28, 29]. A better understanding of volunteers’ motivations will simplify task definitions, allowing motivations to be fulfilled [30], and may also serve as an important attraction factor [31]. There are many studies on motivation in general and its applications to work, but there are fewer on motivation for volunteerism, and their findings indicate a need for more empirical research [32].

2.2 Volunteer Motivation

Volunteer motivation is defined as an individual’s desire to seek out volunteer opportunities, commit to voluntary service, and stay involved in volunteerism for extended periods of time [28, 33]. A motive is something that motivates or guides a person to complete a task or achieve a goal. Motives can range from awards and recognition to self-actualization, and it all depends on the individual. Some people are more motivated by self-realization, while others are more motivated by social acceptance. There are many reasons why people volunteer, from having too much free time to feeling useful (helping those who are less fortunate and dealing with various social and life problems), to gaining personal benefits from volunteering (work experience, travel, acquaintances, etc.), so volunteering appears to them to be an ideal activity to fill that time.

As a result of the application of various theories (e.g., Maslow’s Needs Theory, Vroom’s Expectancy Theory, Herzberg’s Two-factor Motivational Model, Hackman and Oldham’s Job Characteristic Model) that have been proposed to explain why people spend time and effort on volunteer tasks, a wide variety of volunteer motivations have been identified in the volunteer literature [e.g. 28, 33,34,35,36,37,38]. Clary et al. [28] and Lai et al. [37] identify six motivations for volunteering in one of the most comprehensive classifications in the literature: 1) values (to express values related to altruistic and humanitarian concerns for others); 2) understanding (to acquire new learning experiences and/or exercise skills that might otherwise go unused); 3) social (to strengthen social relationships); 4) career (to gain career-related experience); 5) protection (to reduce negative feelings about oneself or address personal problems); 6) self-enhancement (to grow and develop psychologically). Other dimensions of motivation have been identified, such as patriotism [e.g. 39,40,41], security [e.g. 42, 43], reciprocity, reactivity, and recognition [e.g. 44], religion [e.g. 45], etc. Furthermore, these motivations are classified as intrinsic (e.g., self-expression) or extrinsic (discrete outcome) desires [46]. The social environment is also credited with modifying inherent tendencies [46, 47].

2.3 Social Marketing and Volunteering

There is a lot of research related to understanding the motives for getting involved in volunteer activities, which are, in essence, the result of answering the question: Why do people volunteer? The other side of the coin, however, addresses the question: How to influence people to volunteer? According to Rothschild [48], the answer to this question can be found in marketing. Utilizing marketing in the recruitment of young volunteers is, thus, an effective strategy [49]. This primarily refers to social marketing, as a new form of marketing, which emerged in the 1970’s, which applies traditional marketing theories on selling ideas, attitudes and behavior [50]. While commercial marketers engage in marketing activities to increase profit and benefit shareholders, social marketers aim to transform society for the better, in terms of the creation of capable, free, fair and sustainable societies [51]. Social marketing does not only help to build a better society, it is also a strategic tool for planning cost-effective and sustainable projects and ensuring their long-run impact [52]. Since volunteering has a positive impact both on a societal and individual level, marketing the activity is beneficial.

Boehm [53] discussed social marketing as a tool for developing a volunteer program and recruiting volunteers, recognizing the potential of using social marketing for this purpose and calling for additional research on the subject. Several articles highlight the voluntary behavior change involved in social marketing [e.g. 10, 48, 54, 55], but this is not the same as encouraging young people to volunteer through social marketing. Young people are becoming more interested in ethical and environmentally responsible behavior [56, 57]. They prefer businesses that are socially responsible, work to improve society, solve social problems, and have a positive impact on the world. Companies must therefore be transparent and authentic in their sustainable and ethical business practices, and their marketing should be socially responsible [56]. According to Polsa [54], encouraging students to volunteer through social marketing could have a particularly positive impact on both society and students’ lives.

Social marketing also has educational value: in addition to highlighting problems that most people are already aware of (such as the dangers of drunk driving and drug use), it effectively raises public awareness of topics that they might not otherwise be aware of [55]. Having in mind the primary role of influencing behavior, Andreasen [10] discusses three different societal levels of social change: “individual change”, “community mobilization” and “structural change”. Citizens contribute to a change on individual level, whereas, targeting policy makers and stakeholders create change on an institutional and social level [58]. Yet, as Polsa [50] argues, it is the individual who ultimately decides on behavior change.

Although social marketing programs are increasing [10], according to Binney, Hall and Oppenheim [59] there are some difficulties guiding social marketing programs, and consequently, increasing the need for a well-defined theoretical framework for social marketing. According to Gordon [60], when it comes to social marketing projects, the marketing mix is no longer sufficient. As a result, this paper proposes an expansion of social marketing tools through the use of the MOA framework, which has proven to be appropriate for social change programs [10, 48, 59].

The MOA model that has been introduced by MacInnis and Jaworski [61] was originally applied to information processing and advertising effectiveness. According to the model, motivation and ability are important factors in individuals’ information processing and the formation of their attitudes as consumers. The MOA model is also a well-developed framework that can be used as a theoretical foundation to explain employee behavior [7, 62].

Rothschild [48] was the first to apply the MOA model to social marketing, implying that motivation, ability, and opportunity can help determine whether a person is inclined, resilient, or incapable of acting in accordance with desired marketing preferences In this context, motivation is defined as the desire to behave or act, ability is defined as the possession of a skill or expertise to act (for example, the ability to overcome addiction), and opportunity is defined as the absence of environmental barriers to action. Rothschild proposes that social marketers can use education, marketing, or law in various combinations to change consumer motivation, ability, and opportunity, transforming consumers who cannot behave or are resilient into consumers who are prone to behaving in ways that the marketer desires. According to this, first aim of this study was to analyze motives of young individuals to engage in volunteering activities through the MOA model, within the NGO sector of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Therefore, following research question was defined:

RQ1: What motivates young individuals to engage in volunteerism?

According to Andreasen [10], social issues can be classified as motivational, opportunity, or ability problems, and complementary interventions can be designed for the individual, community, or overall program level. Lockstone-Binney, Binney, and Baum [63] applied the MOA model to a pro-environmental behavior change intervention and discovered that it provided insight into the interactions that can lead to long-term behavior change. Volunteering is the socially desirable behavior being promoted in the current paper. As a result, there is reason to believe that using the MOA framework has the potential to assist in the promotion of volunteering as an activity and the desirable benefits associated with this prosocial behavior. Accordingly, another research aim was set, in order to determine how the implementation of social marketing strategies can increase the number of volunteers. Hence, following research question has been proposed:

RQ2: How are young individuals stimulated through social marketing to volunteer?

3 Methodology

Given the previous discussion and the fact that there is a lack of publicly available data on volunteering activities in Bosnia and Herzegovina, an exploratory research design appears to be appropriate [64]. Therefore, this research has applied qualitative exploratory design in investigating the importance of application of social marketing aimed at increasing the number of young volunteers.

The Centre for Promotion of Civil Society (CPCS) has been used as case study since it is one of the rare non-governmental organizations that is actively working on involvement of young people in volunteering activities in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Young people who have volunteered or are still volunteering in CPCS have been found to be an appropriate group of research participants. In total nine volunteers participated in the research. In-depth semi-structured interviews have been used as method of collecting primary data [65]. The interview guide was adapted from a study by Rodrigues Simoes and Jaehn [66] and is based on a theoretical framework, being divided into four main sections. Section 1, basic questions about the respondent; Sect. 2, specific questions about volunteering through the prism of social marketing’s 4 Ps; Sect. 3, specific questions about motivation, opportunities and abilities (MOA model); Sect. 4, concluding remarks about volunteering. All individual interviews with research participants were conducted within a month. Each interview lasted between 40 and 70 min, resulting in a total of 5 h of interviews. Transcriptions were made and analysis was conducted using the qualitative data analysis software Atlas.ti [67].

Complementary data were collected through revising organization documents. Written reports of volunteers from previous years were reviewed and the obligations and responsibilities of volunteers on various projects were determined. This made it possible to envisage certain prescribed volunteering practices at the organizational level.

The analysis was performed using ATLAS.ti qualitative data analysis software. Collected data was analyzed using an open coding structure with various related topics within the framework of theoretical categories suggested by the previously discussed MOA model. In the initial phase of analysis, the software simplifies the encryption process, while in the final phase it provides networks and relationships.

The first phase of data analysis was open coding; reading and understanding all the data found and searching for certain terms to be repeated in order to eventually mark them in the ATLAS.ti software. Subsequently, a second analysis is performed through a coding scheme based on the literature, which is associated with the first open coding results.

The second phase of coding is axial coding. Axial coding is part of an analytical process in which the researcher reconnects parts of the data identified and separated in open coding in new ways to establish a link between categories or codes.

The final, third phase of the analysis was selective coding. ATLAS.ti provided the ability to create multiple code chains and link citations to create networks that are key to coding in the third phase. Concepts, topics, and patterns emerged from network diagrams.

4 Results

Research findings suggests that CPCS was a vital organization in the lives of research respondents as it helped them achieve the development of professional and personal goals, as well as to contribute to positive changes at the community level. Furthermore, the CPCS has enabled the building of trust and independence between male and female volunteers. By establishing contacts, organizing events and actively participating in project activities, CPCS volunteers acquired the skills of empathy, tolerance, understanding and development of interpersonal relationships.

In general, the idea of life goals motivated volunteers to have a positive impact on the lives of others by volunteering, and the concept of setting goals was eventually achieved through lived experiences in communities. It is important to recognize and understand the influences that young people intend to create, and the motivation to achieve them is also often discussed in the literature.

Research shows that thinking about personal change is an innate quality that helps volunteers act as agents of change in the community involved. Through their efforts to solve problems, volunteers gain self-confidence, which further helps them to have a positive impact on society.

Although all three dimensions of the model are relevant to volunteers, each dimension may be different in relation to paid staff. While ability, motivation and opportunity are equally important to foster positive attitudes and behaviors in employees, skills improvement practices, especially recruitment, are likely to be relatively more important for volunteers.

This research highlights that MOA model practices designed to improve skills, motivation and opportunities can have a positive impact on increasing the number of volunteers and helping non-profit organizations to manage their volunteer workforce more effectively. The research emphasized that volunteers are demotivated by bureaucratic, transactional approaches, which is especially important in the operational environment of non-profit organizations. Figure 1 presents main categories, belonging codes and quotes from which they were extracted.

Fig. 1.
figure 1figure 1

Categories, codes and quotes

Full size image

As previously presented, complementary data from organizational documents and reports were used. After inspecting these written reports, it emerged that volunteers, regardless of the project they worked on, had several common obligations and responsibilities, and tasks they were obliged to perform as part of their volunteer engagement. These tasks are: being reliable and responsible, performing duties as assigned and directed, accepting and following the instructions of the volunteer mentor and/or mentor, be willing to learn and participate in orientation, training programs and meetings, maintaining a healthy working relationship with employees, keeping confidential sensitive organizational information, adhering to rules and procedures of the organization. Some of the project activities, which coincided in different projects, and were an integral part of volunteer engagement were: assisting in organizing events, creating volunteer reports and keeping records of arrivals and departures (creating shifts), keeping reports on social networks, writing monthly articles and blogs for the organization’s page on project-related topics, photography at organized events, and contacting participants at organized events.

In order to answer the research questions, it follows from the previous discussion that young individuals are motivated to engage in volunteering activities if it includes changing social behavior, team work, impact on society, network building, desire to gain work experience, gaining work experience, desire for practical experience, and community service. They are also motivated by opportunities that rise by engaging in volunteerism, such as dedicated volunteering, new experience, new perception of volunteering, self-development, and professional competitiveness. When it comes to abilities, young individuals feel motivated to engage in volunteerism as it enables them for activism, personal skills, productivity, and organizational skills. From the perspective of social marketing [68], the MOA model categories from this research could be used for the purpose of ensuring that volunteering activities include these motives, opportunities and abilities [69]. If that would be the case, then the same categories could be used as values which are to be communicated for the purpose of attracting and recruiting new volunteers.

While this research has suggested motivational factors for engaging in volunteering activities, further research should focus on factors which demotivate such engagement. It would be also revealing to identify obstacles faced by those who are motivated to engage in volunteerism. Finally, it could further be explored how developed abilities get applied in the future and whether they get employed for volunteering activities or some other purposes.

5 Conclusions

In Bosnia and Herzegovina, there is still no systematic and comprehensive research on volunteering and volunteers. There particularly a lack of studies focusing on different aspects of volunteering, such as types of volunteering, volunteering of a specific demographic group, motivation to volunteer, etc. This study aimed at enlightening some of these aspects in the context of Bosnia and Herzegovina. An explorative qualitative research design was applied in order to investigate how the MOA model could be applied through social marketing activities in order to stimulate young individuals to engage in volunteerism. Research findings clearly point to a set of motives (changing social behavior, team work, impact on society, network building, desire to gain work experience, gaining work experience, desire for practical experience, and community service), opportunities (dedicated volunteering, new experience, new perception of volunteering, self-development, and professional competitiveness) and abilities (activism, personal skills, productivity, and organizational skills) which young volunteers perceive as valuable enrichments to their personal and professional lives, as well as to the community and overall society they are members of. These findings pose valuable insights for decision makers in volunteerism and social marketing, as they can be used for the purpose of organizing and promoting volunteerism amongst young individuals [68,69,70].