Volunteer Tourism

Volunteer Tourism is one of the major growth areas in contemporary tourism, where tourists for various reasons seek alternative goodwill experiences and activities. To meet this demand there has been a surge in volunteer programmes offered in range of destinations organized by a variety of charities and tour operators which is predicted to continue to grow in the future. Volunteer Tourism provides an in-depth analysis of the complex issues associated with traditional and contemporary volunteer tourism. Reflecting the growth in this phenomenon, this book provides a cohesive collection of chapters written from a range of international expert scholars and researchers. The theoretically rich, practically applied and empirically grounded contributions are based on current and diverse research in the area. This groundbreaking volume explores topics which have not been addressed in the literature before, such as the impact on host communities, introducing new areas and ideas to the field. The diverse range of themes are identified and addressed, including volunteer tourism and sustainability to, uniquely, the examination of volunteer tourism stakeholders - volunteers themselves, the host-to-guest exchange, and the organizations - and management of volunteers. These themes are examined in a range of international case studies, demonstrating the wide range of issues associated with volunteer tourism. This volume is a timely addition offering an innovative approach to the area. Volunteer Tourism will be of interest to both students and researchers interested in tourism, leisure and development, as well as non-academics, practitioners, NGOs government officials at all levels.

Dr Angela M. Benson is Divisional Leader for Tourism at the University of Brighton, Adjunct Associate Professor, University of Canberra, and Founding Chair of the ATLAS Volunteer Tourism Research Group. Published articles include the areas of Volunteer Tourism, Best Value, Sustainability and Research Methods.

1. Volunteer Tourism: Theory and Practice Part 1: The Volunteer: Motivation, Experiences and the Self 2. Understanding Voluntourism: A Glaserian Grounded Theory Study 3. VOLUNtourists Versus volunTOURISTS: a true Dichotomy or Merely a Differing Perception? 4. Journeys of the Self: Volunteer Tourists in Nepal 5. Young Non-Institutionalised Volunteer Tourists in Guatemala: Exploring Youth and Self-development 6. Developing and Promoting Sustainable Volunteer Tourism Sites in Sabah, Malaysia: Experiences Dimensions and Tourists' Motives 7. Volunteer Tourism as a Life-Changing Experience 8. Self and Society in Voluntourism: A Thirty Year Retrospective Analysis of Post Trip Self Development of Volunteer Tourists to the Israeli Kibbutz Part 2: Expanding the Boundaries on Volunteer Tourism Research 9. Volunteer Tourism and Divers with Disabilities: Evidence from Malaysia 10. Profiling Volunteer Holiday Leaders: a Case Study of National Trust Working Holiday Leaders: Socio-demographics, Basic Human Values and Functional Volunteer Motivations 11. Volunteer Archaeological Tourism: An Overview 12. Managing volunteers: An application of ISO 31000:2009 Risk Management: Principles and Guidelines to the Management of Volunteers in Tourism and Beyond 13. Volunteer Tourism and Intercultural Exchange: Exploring the 'Other' in the Experience 14. Volunteer Tourism: How do we know it is 'Making a Difference'? 15. How Does it Make a Difference? Towards 'Accreditation' of the Development Impact of Volunteer Tourism 16. Volunteer Tourism: Structuring the Research Agenda