The perception of volunteering in Türkiye: socio-cultural factors and structural-institutional continuities

Abstract

Cross-cultural studies focusing on formal volunteering often underestimate and misinterpret the volunteering rates in non-Western countries like T & uuml;rkiye. To address this gap, we conducted 22 focus group discussions to explore the perception of volunteering in T & uuml;rkiye within the historical context of social and political culture and to provide insights into the prevalence of informal over formal volunteering. Our findings reveal that volunteering in T & uuml;rkiye is perceived as a daily altruistic activity that does not need to be recorded. This perspective, informed by Islamic norms and traditional practices, is reinforced by the strong state tradition and distrust of civil society organizations (CSOs) rooted in the historical dynamics of civil society. We argue that the prevalence of informal volunteering in T & uuml;rkiye depends on a socio-cultural perception of volunteering, which is underpinned by structural and institutional continuities that interact with ongoing transformations between civil society and the state, marked by T & uuml;rkiye's distinctive modernization experience.