Volunteering in the University Context: Student Perception and Participation

Abstract

In increasingly diverse cultural contexts, the intercultural perspective favors an enriching coexistence between cultures, with volunteering being an exercise that allows for a critical transformation of reality in order to achieve a more supportive and equitable society. This article aims to find out how university students conceive of volunteering, as well as their level of participation. The sample was made up of 208 students from the Pedagogy and Social Education degrees of the University of Granada during the 2019/2020 academic year. An ad hoc questionnaire was applied, which incorporated a standardised instrument (Adapted Values Test), as well as questions designed by the authors. The results underline the positive axiological perception of volunteering. The participants understand volunteering as a helping role that depends on the social, personal, and professional motivations of the students. However, this positive perception is not transformed into active participation and continuous links with voluntary organisations. The conclusions indicate that university students value volunteering as a necessary task for the social good, although their participation is low, and it is necessary to transform the pro-social awareness of university students into real participation.

Keywords

• social commitment
• social participation
• university students