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Governmentalities of volunteering: A study of regional Western Australia
Journal article   Peer reviewed

Governmentalities of volunteering: A study of regional Western Australia

D. Pick, K. Holmes and M. Brueckner
Volutas, Vol.22(3), pp.390-408
2011
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11266-010-9161-5
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Abstract

The aim of this article is to investigate the governmentalities of volunteering in regional Western Australia. Drawing on interviews with 25 consenting volunteers and their managers, a thematic analysis revealed the experiences and perceptions of the research participants. Two distinct governmentalities exist: one reflecting neo-liberal governmentality and the other reflective of classic liberalism. Whilst this study is limited to regional Western Australia, the results suggest that there are variations in ‘governmentalities’ of volunteering comprising a mix of sometimes contradictory elements. This article also demonstrates the usefulness of governmentality for expanding the understanding of volunteering that has the potential to illuminate vital elements of the volunteer sector, which are being missed. There are many niches where volunteer groups exist or are emerging that are not visible and out of reach of the control techniques commonly used by governments adopting advanced (neo) liberal governmentalities.

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Citation topics
6 Social Sciences
6.27 Political Science
6.27.1611 Volunteering
Web Of Science research areas
Social Issues
ESI research areas
Social Sciences, general
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