International Journal of Event Management Research Volume 3, Number 1, 2007 www.ijemr.

org

VOLUNTEERS AND MEGA SPORTING EVENTS: DEVELOPING A

RESEARCH FRAMEWORK

Tom Baum
University of Strathclyde
Scotland

Leonie Lockstone
Victoria University
Australia

ABSTRACT
Interest in all aspects of the politics, financing, planning, management and operation of mega sporting events has been highlighted both by
success stories and ongoing problems associated with Olympic Games, Football World Cups and other similar events. There is a growing
literature that addresses these and related matters through both case history and comparative analyses. Within the context of mega
sporting events, the issue of employment creation is an important motivator for host cities and features high on the political justification
agenda for bids to host events. At the same time, the most significant working contribution to major mega events in sports, as in other
areas, is provided by the very large numbers of volunteers who undertake tasks across the range of opportunities afforded by such events.
Numbers of volunteers between 40,000 and 60,000 have been noted for some recent major events. Relatively little is known about these
volunteers at mega sporting events and yet their contribution and wider impact is very significant, both to the events themselves and within
the host community. This paper seeks to identify the evident gaps that exist in understanding areas such as what volunteers do at mega
sporting events; who they are; what motivates them; how volunteering impacts upon their lives; what associated activities they do
surrounding the event in the host city; and the extent to which volunteering is recidivistic. The paper concludes with the presentation of a
tentative research framework agenda in order to guide future study of this important area.

KEYWORDS
Mega events, Sports employment, Volunteering

INTRODUCTION others. The justification for or arguments against a

Mega sporting events, such as those of global interest country or city competing for ultimate sporting prizes such
including the football World Cup and the Olympic Games, as these (or, indeed “lesser” events such as the
provide a public interest agenda that addresses issues Commonwealth Games, the final of the UEFA Champions
across a wide spectrum of concerns and opportunities. League or the hosting of rounds of the Formula 1 circuit)
Such sporting events are part of the wider and growing are well rehearsed and rarely definitive, combining both
analysis of major events within diverse fields of urban political and economic sophistry in order to pursue a
regeneration, economic development, politics and tourism particular cost-benefit analytical case, for or against.
(Getz, 1997). These address matters such as cost and There is a growing case literature on the immediate and
viability, economic regeneration (physical, employment), sustainable impact of sporting and other mega events on
creation of resources and infrastructure for future cities and communities (as examples from many, Ritchie
community and event use, community, civic and national and Aitken, 1984; Hall, 1987; Ritchie & Lyons, 1990;
pride and environmental impact among a plethora of Ritchie & Smith, 1991; Hiller, 1995; Jones, 2001; Lee,

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Lee & Lee, 2005; Kim & Petrick, 2005; Lee & Taylor, important economic and cultural dimension to the
2005; Kim, Gursoy & Lee, 2006) but little that is definitive effective operation of mega sporting events. Public
to guide policy makers and politicians along a path of recognition of the contribution of volunteers to major
certainty in their decision making in this area. The wider sporting events is widely heralded. Kemp (2002, p. 110),
domain of sports tourism, including as it does for example, reports this with respect to the 2000 Sydney
participation in sports as well as spectator access, is also Olympic Games:
an important, emerging area within the wider tourism and
leisure literature. Hinch and Hingham (2001), address a Without the personal investment of the
conceptualisation of the phenomenon that places sports volunteers, these mega-events could simply not
as a central attraction within events and activity tourism have been arranged. This fact was nowhere more
and seeks to explore its impact in spatial and temporal recognised than at the conclusion of the Sydney
terms. They further recognise the uncharted territory that Olympic Games when volunteers were given the
is explored in their discussion and propose a research chance to take up free tickets to the Olympic
agenda for exploration of the area. This approach and closing ceremony and later when the central
analysis is useful to the specific context of our discussion business district of Sydney was closed for half a
here. work day to provide the volunteers with their own
ticker-tape parade.
Within the context of the organisation of mega sporting
events, the issues of employment impact and the delivery
of services are not widely considered. Ingerson (2001, p. Likewise, the official brochure for the 2006
55) notes that “the majority of events conducted rarely Commonwealth Games in Melbourne (Melbourne 2006
accommodate permanent long-term employment. Both Commonwealth Games, 2006) formally recognizes the
the arts and sports industries generally have a high level contribution of its “Unsung Heroes” by listing all 14,500 of
of volunteer workers and with events and festivals held them by name and state over twelve pages of the
over a number of days, the use of volunteers is publication. Green and Chalip (2004, p. 49) note that:
economically beneficial for the event organisers”. Indeed,
the economic impact of direct employment generation … volunteers have become essential to the
through mega sporting events is questioned by, among delivery of sport and recreation services, adding
others, Black and Pape (1996) who query the optimism of several hundred dollars of value per capita to the
governments in claiming employment generation within contribution that sport and recreation make to
the case-making for mega events. Hall is similarly critical gross domestic product…Volunteers have
of claims by the organisers of the 2000 Sydney Olympic become particularly vital for the delivery of special
Games that the event would create 5,300 jobs in New events, as most events now depend to some
South Wales and 7,500 jobs throughout Australia, degree on volunteers for event planning and
describing the event as “an expensive job creation operations.
exercise” (Hall, 2001, p. 172). In Germany, this argument,
likewise, featured in the run-up to the 2006 Football World The literature on volunteering is relatively recent with
Cup, with claims of up to 60,000 new jobs directly regard to time-bound mega events, sporting and cultural,
attributable to the event. Similarly, Symon (2006) reports although the contribution of, for example, Elstad (1996);
projections of 10,000 jobs, 6,000 of which are permanent, Farrell, Johnston and Twyman (1998); Chalip (2000);
as a potential benefit for Glasgow from hosting the 2014 Moragas, Moreno and Paniagua, 2000; Kemp (2002); and
Commonwealth Games. At the same time, there is Green and Chalip (2004) is evidence of an emerging field
evidence of new economic activity at a micro, of study. At the same time, there is rather wider
entrepreneurial level within destinations hosting mega discussion of volunteering within the wider, participant
sporting events, creating self-employment (and potentially sports environment (for example, Andrew, 1996; Amis
more) in a manner that is imperceptible to standard and Slack, 1996; Cuskelly, 1995). By contrast, rather
economic employment indicators (Spilling, 1996). more is known about volunteering and volunteers within a
more stable and long-term working environment in areas
At the same time, as Ingerson (2001) notes, the role of such as social services (SCER, 2005) and the cultural
volunteers is widely recognised as contributing an and heritage sector (Lockstone, Deery & King, 2003;

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Lockstone, 2004; Edwards, 2006; Graham and Foley, associated with hallmark events and as such both Hall
1998). Indeed, the focus of much work to promote (1992, p. 1) and Getz (1997, p. 6) have recognised the
voluntary work is on the establishment of long-term, cross over between these two event types.
essentially professional working relationships between
volunteers and their employers (Baum, 2006; Kent Sports Roche (2000) emphasises that mega events are typically,
Development Unit, undated). The focus on long-term organized by the collaborative efforts of international non-
commitment is influenced, for example, by the changing governmental organizations (such as the IOC or FIFA)
legal environment in many countries which increasingly and national governments and their associated bodies.
demands extensive and expensive personal checks on To these, increasingly, needs to be added the role of
those volunteering for work with the young and global companies as sponsoring partners to mega events,
vulnerable. providing both financial contribution and widespread
exposure to the event in question. There is little doubt
This paper proposes a tentative framework as the basis that mega sporting events cost major sums of money to
for the development of a research agenda that, if mount and that there is ongoing debate as to the balance
implemented, would go some way to redressing the between costs and benefits associated with hosting.
limited scope of information available with regard to
volunteers in major time-bound events, notably in the Mega sporting events are justified, in terms of the public
sporting context. The framework identifies areas for expenditure that is required to host them, on the basis of
consideration with regard to the volunteers themselves their long-term benefits through new event and urban
(demographics, relationship to the event, motivation, infrastructure, urban renewal, enhanced international
circumstances, personal histories of volunteering, short- reputation, increased tourist visitation and related benefits
and long-term outcomes and benefits of volunteering) as (Ritchie & Aitken, 1985; Hall, 1987; Hall, 1992; Crompton,
well as addressing dimensions relating to the economic 1999; Kasimati, 2003). The process of bidding for mega
and cultural contribution that volunteering makes to the sports events is also highly complex and political
success and, indeed, viability of mega sporting events. As (Westerbeek et al, 2002). Many mega sporting events,
an approach to the analysis of volunteers and voluntary especially those that are “one off” rather than annual
work, our paper here is, in part, modelled on the earlier dates on circuit timetables (FI races, Tennis Grand Stand
work of Ellis (1985) who set out an early research agenda tournaments), also develop strong cultural dimensions
for the address of what has become an important field for and the importance of these links to the development of
academic and practitioner research. culture and heritage in a community is widely recognized
(Scott, 2004).
MEGA SPORTING EVENTS
Roche (1994, p. 1) describes mega events (of which Sports events and tourism are inexorably linked and there
those in the sporting calendar are key examples) as is considerable evidence that the tourism potential of
“short-term events with long-term consequences”. This mega sporting events is a major factor in encouraging
description points clearly to the economic as well as cities to bid to host such events. Such tourism potential
political, social and cultural motives that persuade cities relates to the immediate attraction of the event to
and countries to bid for the hosting of events such as the international and domestic visitors as spectators and
Olympic Games and the Football World Cup. Roche participants in the cultural environment that frequently
(2000, p. 1) further defines such happenings as “large- surrounds mega events of this nature. It can also be seen
scale cultural (including commercial and sporting) events in terms of longer-term contribution to raising the profile of
which have a dramatic character, mass popular appeal the destination and to the attraction of new visitors to the
and international significance”. Getz (1997, p. 6) city on a recurring basis in the future. The literature on
quantifies the definition by noting that “their volume sports tourism is one that is growing rapidly (for example,
should exceed 1 million visits, their capital cost should be Getz, 1998; Ritchie & Adair, 2002; Hinch & Higham,
at least $500 million and their reputation should be that of 2004; Higham, 2005) but they make scant reference to
a ‘must see’ event”. This latter point highlights the role the core concern of this paper in the mega sporting
such events can have in destination development and events context, that of employment issues in general and
image building. These outcomes are most closely volunteering specifically.

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Roche (2000, p. 3) refers to an “ecology” of events, based incorporated similar dimensions in their volunteer
on their scale; their geographical impact (global, regional, typology. A code of volunteering developed by
national, sub-national, local); and their socio-political Volunteering Australia (Cordingley, 2000, p.74) has
position (commemorative events, national days, political acknowledged principles such as:
rallies). Each level and context have some similar
attributes in terms of organizational features and Volunteering is not a substitute for paid work.
participant adherence. At the same time, there are also and
clear levels of distinctiveness between such events, that Volunteers do not replace paid workers and do
enable us to distinguish an Olympic Games from, for not constitute a threat to the job security of paid
example, a local football derby in Milan or an Ashes workers.
cricket test between Australia and England.
In discussing the various elements of volunteering, Noble
Mega sporting events generate economic activity on a (1991) noted that the activity is done without expectation
major scale, within the preparatory phase, during the of monetary reward. The Australian Bureau of Statistics
event itself and, if aspirations are met, as a longer-term (2001, p.44) study into voluntary work in Australia
consequence of the event in terms of inward investment classified a volunteer as “someone who willingly gave
and tourism. A major component of such economic unpaid help, in the form of time, service or skills, through
impact is in terms of employment generation, new jobs an organisation or group”. The reimbursement of
that are created as a direct result of the event across a expenses (in full or part) or the provision of small gifts did
wide spectrum of the economy. Some of these new jobs not preclude people receiving such benefits from being
are long-term and within the wider economy (train drivers considered as volunteers. These definitional aspects
given working opportunities as a result of new transport relating to the absence of financial gain and the
infrastructure projects in the city) while others are time- reimbursement of expenses (to a value less than the work
bound and specific to the event itself or similar activities provided) help to distinguish between paid employees
using the same venues (stadium catering, security and and volunteers.
the like). In numerical terms, probably the most significant
cohort of workers at mega sporting events are people The issue of free will is a fundamental element of
who are working without remunerative benefits, the army volunteering (Noble, 1991). The willingness of people to
of volunteers who seek to contribute to a wide range of give their time to an activity or organisation without
tasks and responsibilities within the event host city. The compulsion and in consideration of the limited rewards
paper now considers the phenomenon of volunteering available is a primary research question arising from the
and volunteer motivation. study of volunteering. In relation to free will and
motivation to volunteer, peer pressure and social
VOLUNTARY WORK AND VOLUNTEERING obligation factors have been found to exert some
It is important to define the concept of volunteering prior influence (Babchuk & Booth, 1969; Freeman, 1997).
to discussing and mapping volunteer research in the
context of mega sporting events. This is a complex task A further aspect in defining volunteering is the nature of
in view of the considerable scope for defining the benefit received from the activity in question. This
volunteering in terms of motives (altruism, self- element of the conceptual framework (Davis Smith, 1999)
interestedness), activities (leisure-oriented, work- draws a distinction between volunteering and pure leisure
oriented) and setting (voluntary organisations, by providing that there must be a beneficiary to the
government bodies). activity other than (or in addition to) the volunteer. The
scope to which a beneficiary is defined may be open to
Five elements have been identified as comprising the interpretation. For example, Darvill and Munday (1984),
conceptual framework of volunteering (Davis Smith, cited in Parker (1992, p. 2), defined a volunteer as being
1999). These elements include rewards, the issue of free “a person who voluntarily provides an unpaid direct
will, nature of benefit received from volunteer activity, service for one or more persons to whom the volunteer is
organisational setting and level of commitment of not related”.
volunteers. Cnaan, Handy and Wadsworth (1996)

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The research literature has identified some similarities undertaken only in non-profit organisations. Non-profit
between volunteering and leisure. Building upon a organisations, variously known as the third sector, non-
concept proposed by Stebbins (1982), Parker (1992) profit, charitable, benevolent, voluntary, or non-
defined volunteering as being a type of ‘serious leisure’, government organisations are separate from both the
the characteristics of which include a need to persevere state and the for-profit sector”. Unfortunately, this
with the activity, the tendency to have a career in it, perspective of volunteer work does not encompass the
durable benefits, unique culture and participant variety of roles filled by volunteers within the public sector
identification. Henderson (1984) outlined some common including museum guides, fire fighters, teacher’s aides,
features including participant free will and various benefits recreation assistants and information guides.
sought from both volunteer and leisure activities. The
author goes on to suggest that motivation may act as a The final element of the conceptual framework (Davis
link to describe the relationship between leisure and Smith, 1999) is the level of commitment by which
volunteerism. volunteer activity can be defined. Definitions such as that
utilised by Du Boulay (1996) specify, “a volunteer is a
Stebbins (1996, p. 216) noted early on that “serious person who, on a regular basis, contributes his or her
leisure volunteering is career volunteering”. This concept time and energy” (p.5). Such a definition may be
has been compared to its counterpart, casual leisure considered too narrow to encompass one-off volunteer
volunteering, which Stebbins suggests “is momentary; it activities (for example, special event volunteering) and
requires little skill or knowledge but is nonetheless this is a problem from the perspective of this discussion.
satisfying, perhaps even enjoyable” (1996, p. 219). Whilst
the temporal aspect of casual leisure might be most apt in In the context of volunteer motivation, Harrison (1995,
relation to mega event volunteering, the definition itself p.372) was one of the first to acknowledge that volunteer
does not sit well with the skills base often required or participation can be “discrete or episodic, rather than
acquired as a result of this type of participation. continuous or successive”. Sports event volunteering is
Acknowledging this gap, Stebbins recently added to his an example given by the author of this type of
seminal theory, suggesting that in addition to serious participation. Support was found for the theory of episodic
leisure, volunteering occurs in project-based leisure volunteer motivation, with Harrison (1995, p.373) noting
opportunities that can be short-term, infrequent, yet of a that “taking part in volunteer work at a specified time and
relatively complicated nature. The author goes on to note place is a direct, positive function of the intention to do
that these opportunities require “considerable planning, so”. Recognising the differences between episodic and
effort and sometimes skill or knowledge, but is for all that sustained volunteering, it was suggested that the results
neither serious leisure nor intended to develop into such” of the study may not generalise well to ongoing
(Stebbins, 2004, p. 7). Volunteering for sports events is volunteers as the theory presupposes deliberate decision
given as a specific example of project-based leisure. processes and this type of volunteer is more likely to be
routinised in his or her approach and less conscious of
Moving on, organisational setting refers to the alternative activities.
environment in which volunteering occurs. Such settings
may be defined broadly and can range from formal More recently, Hustinx and Lammertyn (2004) examined
(organised) to informal (one-to-one) volunteer activities. different patterns of volunteering. In this context, the
Wilson and Musick (1997) distinguished between formal authors contend that collective volunteers are ongoing
volunteering as being typically carried out in the context volunteers who are committed on a long-term basis,
of organisations, with the work undertaken contributing to whilst reflexive volunteers are highly individualised in
the collective good. They defined informal volunteering as selecting their assignments and will tend to do so in a
‘helping’ and noted that these activities (for example, series of fragmented episodes (Hustinx & Lammertyn,
assisting friends, neighbours and relatives) were more 2004, p.553). These patterns were tested based on items
private and unorganised in nature. A number of sectoral representing attitudinal and motivational characteristics.
differences may also affect the formal setting. With Cluster analysis yielded four clusters, two of which, the
reference to the principles of volunteering established by researchers interpreted as being most closely aligned to
Volunteering Australia, Cordingley (2000, p.74) noted, collective and reflexive forms of volunteering. These
“there are compelling reasons for volunteer work to be
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volunteer types were respectively named unconditional relate to the large number of participants (competitors,
and distant. Hustinx and Lammertyn (2004, p.568) technical support staff, administrators and spectators) in a
mention the strong ties unconditional volunteers have to time-bound but intensive congregation in one or more
their organisations, whilst “the distant volunteer group is locations within a defined geographical region (city, state
clustered around volunteers with loose type involvement: or country). In the present context, volunteering is defined
infrequent, not really time-consuming, and on a short- as “people exercising their own free will, for no
term basis. Moreover, the nature of their activities is very remuneration at all, in a formal setting to help others”
focused”. Despite these somewhat negative sounding (Paull, 1999, p.27). This definition has been chosen
connotations, Hustinx and Lammertyn suggest that a because it is broad enough to encompass the range of
reflexive volunteer can demonstrate a strong sense of roles event volunteers might undertake, whilst still
loyalty to their organisation and its mission. Whilst neither embodying the basic tenets of the volunteer concept.
study (Harrison 1995; Hustinx & Lammertyn, 2004) was
set in the context of special events, there is considerable As we have seen, mega sporting events attract and
scope to undertake research that is, given the suitability depend upon very large numbers in terms of the
of episodic or distant volunteering to the nature of this volunteers who contribute to such events but information
area and the overwhelming focus of most research on about their characteristics against the range of criteria
sustained or ongoing volunteering. addressed above is limited (Kemp, 2002 is very much
the exception here). It is, however, a reasonable (but
In examining the various defining elements of relatively untested) assumption that that volunteers who
volunteering, it is evident that determining a contribute to mega sporting events exhibit some of the
comprehensive and accepted definition of the concept characteristics of those committed to volunteering in other
may not be entirely feasible from a research perspective. contexts. The nature of commitment at such events (time
The discussion does, however, offer a comprehensive constrained, high profile context) however, means that
examination of issues relating to volunteering. A further such volunteers could also exhibit features that diverge
debate that has contributed to the lack of consensus in from those that characterise more standard models of
defining volunteering is whether only purely altruistic volunteering. The purpose of this question is to identify
behaviours should be construed as volunteering or if an the questions that can be asked to map the areas where
element of exchange exists in the volunteer relationship. mega sports events volunteers are similar and where they
In providing an overview of the relevant literature, Pearce diverge from their colleagues in other settings of
(1993) suggested that a more appropriate term for use in volunteer work.
the volunteer context might be ‘prosocial’ rather than
‘altruistic’. As the author noted, altruism may involve a VOLUNTEERS AND TIME-BOUND MEGA EVENTS:
form of self-sacrifice on the part of the volunteer that may A RESEARCH FRAMEWORK AGENDA
not be within their best interests. Reference to ‘prosocial’ The discussion of mega sporting events and the role of
acts in relation to volunteering however, may volunteers within their organizations thus far leads to the
appropriately convey behaviours that assist others while conclusion that the relationship between the two areas of
not causing detriment or restriction to the person analysis is one that has been relatively poorly served in
undertaking them. the literature. At the same time, it is evident that
researchers do have considerable opportunity to develop
In light of the foregoing discussion, selecting an work that aims to provide clearer analysis of, for example,
appropriate definition of volunteering may be viewed as a the role that volunteers can and do play in mega sporting
relatively subjective exercise. In the context of special events, their contribution across a range of economic and
events, the sense of regularity and temporal commitment cultural dimensions and the long-term impact of
that underpins the above attempts to define volunteering volunteering on volunteers themselves.
and volunteers are not necessarily present. Indeed, as we
have seen, some discussion of definitions explicitly Therefore, this paper proposes a framework for future
excludes special event volunteers (Du Boulay, 1996). For research, the outcomes of which have the potential to
the purposes of this paper, concept definition should inform thinking by policy makers, sports administrators,
allow for the operational features of mega sports events tourism interests and academics when considering both
that are the impetus for volunteer roles. These features
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the possible impact (of future events) and evaluating the

long-term effects of past events. (5) To what extent do they take supervisory and
management responsibility in their area of volunteering
Volunteers and the organization of mega sporting work? How does the responsibility and authority profile of
events volunteers relate to the work and responsibilities of paid
(1) Defining volunteerism in the context of mega sports employees at mega sporting events?
events – can “standard” definitions that are, primarily,
drawn from social and community sector (Noble, 1991; (6) Selection criteria and selection process – how are
Osborne, 1998) be applied uncritically to major events or volunteers recruited in terms of promotion and selection
is some reappraisal required in this very different context? process? Are potential volunteers rejected and, of they
While there are evidently social and cultural dimensions are, on what basis? There is some evidence that mega
to mega games volunteering when, for example, such sporting events do receive many more applications than
events include disabled athletes and spectators, the they are able to accommodate (FIFA, 2004) but the
general context is very different as is the duration of detailed criteria employed in such selection in terms of
commitment expected from volunteers. specific roles and responsibilities are unclear (See
Appendix 3 for details). Given contemporary security
(2) Numbers – how many volunteers are employed at sensitivities at mega sporting events, how are volunteers
different types of mega sporting events? Both Green and vetted and security controlled?
Chalip (2004) and FIFA (2004) note volunteer levels for a
number of mega sporting events but figures quoted seem (7) Demographics in terms of age, gender, ethnicity,
to provide a fairly crude estimate of the numbers involved status, experience – do volunteers at mega sporting
and give no indication of the characteristics of volunteers events exhibit similar demographic characteristics to
and their origin (See Appendix 1 for estimates of event those identified with regard to other areas of
volunteer numbers). volunteering? “When Sydney won the Olympics, 75,000
people applied to be volunteers. More half than were over
(3) Sports events types and volunteers – are sporting 60 and three quarters were from NSW” (Commonwealth
events that are perceived to be more “amateur” in ethos Games and Volunteers Update, 2005a, p. 8).
(such as the Olympics and Commonwealth Games) more
likely to attract/seek volunteers than overtly commercial (8) Geographical – local, national, international, is
and professional sporting events such as Formula 1 volunteering for mega sports events a localized
Motor Racing? Evidence from Football World Cups (FIFA, phenomenon or does it attract participants from outside
2004) suggests that this may not necessarily be the case. the city/ region/ country? At a rough estimate, some 10 –
Are cultural showcasing and the nation representative 15% of the 14,500 volunteers working at the 2006
state status of those taking part an influencing factor – Commonwealth Games in Melbourne were “out of state”,
Olympic Games and World Cups go beyond from parts of Australia other than Victoria but none are
individualistic sporting prowess and focus on national identified as based outside of the country (Melbourne
achievement. Do differing types of sporting events attract 2006 Commonwealth Games, 2006) (See Appendix 4 for
volunteers who have different motivations and a breakdown by State). Of the 25, 000 volunteers who
backgrounds? signed up to work at the 2006 Football World Cup in
Germany, applications “came from around the world,
(4) Roles and responsibilities – what is the range of including Canada, Argentina …. and included people with
activities undertaken by volunteers at mega sporting experience from the 2002 World Cup in South Korea and
events? To what extent do they contribute to categories Japan and even from 1974, when Germany last hosted
of responsibility such as technical, sporting support; the event” (World Volunteer Web, 2005). Do some forms
ancillary services; visitor care; and the local/ national of mega events attract international volunteers? How
cultural dimension? FIFA (2004) list a wide range of areas would such international volunteering reconcile with the
of work that volunteers can undertake but it is not clear national cultural hosting function that many volunteers
from this listing what specifically is required and what fulfill?
levels of responsibility are expected (see Appendix 2 for
assigned roles).
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(9) Background – sporting, cultural, formal links to event

area (coach, participant). Do volunteers for mega sporting (13) Therefore, analysis is required of the medium- to
events have a specific commitment to and interest in the long-term impact on life and careers – how, if at all, does
theme of the event or to particular sports within it? Do the experience of short-term volunteering impact on
they have participant experience in the event area or are volunteers’ working and personal lives?
they formally affiliated to organizations participating
through club membership etc? Are they part of an The Economics of volunteering
associated heritage or cultural movement or association? (1) City economics – to what extent do the economics of
staging mega sporting events depend on the contribution
(10) Motivation – why do volunteers volunteer for mega of volunteers? Green and Chalip (2004, p. 49) describe
sports events? Are their motivations similar to that of events as “becoming increasingly dependent on
long-term volunteers? Both Elstad (1996) and Farrell et volunteers” and this conclusion is also reached by Mules
al. (1998) suggest that volunteer commitment to an event and Faulkner (1996) and Getz (1998).
will be driven, in part, by their satisfaction with the actual
experience. Green and Chalip (2004), however, point out (2) Paid work substitution – how much do volunteers
that while this may be part of the explanation, there is “save” event organizers? How many paid employees
little in this analysis to tell us what actually causes would be taken on if volunteers were not available?
volunteer satisfaction.
(3) Individual economics – what is the extent of
(11) Previous volunteering behaviour – do volunteers commitment by volunteers to mega sporting events in
repeat their experience in mega sports events (this sport, terms of time, loss of earnings, travel (especially from out
others)? Byren (2006) talks about the “bounce-back” of town volunteers), cost of accommodation etc.?
behaviour of episodic volunteers in the context of work
within community groups but little is known about similar (4) Volunteers as spending tourists - what is the local
repeat volunteering for mega sporting events. Is, for tourism spend of out-of-town volunteers during events?
example, there evidence of such volunteer behaviour Do they bring family, friends with them and what are the
between, for example, the Sydney Olympic Games in financial costs to them of this? Interestingly, Kasimati
2000 and the Melbourne Commonwealth Games in (2003, p. 435) develops a fairly inclusive schema to
2006? World Volunteer Web (2005) points to some represent the multiplier impact of money spent at major
evidence of repeat volunteering at Football World Cups sporting events such as the Olympic Games. The
but provides no quantification of the extent of this contribution of volunteers (and, indeed, paid employees)
phenomenon. Furthermore, to what extent are mega is ignored and there is a strong case to develop a parallel
sporting event volunteers drawn from an established volunteer multiplier impact model to represent the value
volunteer pool in other areas (social, cultural, sporting)? of this group to a local economy. Gratton, Shibli and
Coleman (2005) do recognize, in part, the economic
(12) Training – what new skills do volunteers acquire and dimensions of volunteering. In their analysis of the Flora
how do they acquire them? To what extent is use made of London Marathon in 2000, they identify the number of
volunteers’ existing skills profile? Farrell et al. (1998) volunteers (7,000) and their expenditure in terms of food
found that educational/ learning outcomes were major and drinks consumed but do not consider further impacts
factors underpinning volunteer motivational behaviour at that volunteering may have on the destination.
sporting events while both Elstad (1996) and Kemp
(2002) also point to learning benefits. What is not clear is (5) Volunteers as visiting tourists – what do out-of-town
how impactful such learning is on the long-term volunteers do and see as tourists in a strange city/
development and careers of volunteers and whether location?
returning volunteers, on a bounce-back experience, seek
to learn more of the same or focus on new learning (6) Cost of recruitment/ training – how much do mega
opportunities from their repeat experience. Indeed, are sporting event organizers budget for the recruitment and
bounce-back volunteers serial learners or is the training of their volunteers? How do they handle specialist
developmental aspect of volunteering confined to first aspects of training, for example security?
time participants as mega sporting event volunteers?
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(7) Cost of providing uniforms, food, local travel, facilities CONCLUSIONS – A WAY FORWARD
– what budget is allocated to volunteer care? The purpose of this paper has been to survey existing
work on volunteering in the context of mega sporting
(8) Service quality and management costs – how is events such as the Olympic Games and the Football
service quality managed in terms of volunteer service World Cup. Specifically, this paper argues that there is a
delivery and what are the costs involved with the lack of holistic research that takes into consideration the
management of this area? wide range of themes and issues that pertain to
volunteering in the sports events context. The prime focus
The image of volunteering of existing work to date has been on the volunteers
(1) Is volunteering at mega sporting events socially and themselves, their motivation and causes of satisfaction.
ethnically inclusive? Do volunteers to mega sporting Secondary to this has been limited work to assess the
events reflect the social composition of the host economic value of volunteers to host cities and sports
community? organisers. Beyond these themes, the level of analysis of
volunteers and their roles and impacts has been limited.
(2) Social and cultural representation of city/ destination?
Does the volunteer force provide an appropriate This paper highlights a tentative research framework
representation of the cultural and ethnic composition of agenda that is by no means inclusive in seeking to
the host community? identify the wide range of potential avenues for
investigation that the field of volunteering merits. Further
(3) Volunteering and developing country host cities research in the areas highlighted will be of value to mega
(Beijing Olympics, 2008; South Africa, Cricket World Cup, sporting event organisers in maximising the value they
2003; Football World Cup, 2010; Commonwealth Games, can derive from effective use of volunteers. Such
Kuala Lumpur, 1998; F1 in Kuala Lumpur, Shanghai). In a research however can also contribute significantly to a
general sense, the impact of mega sporting events is wide range of other academic and political debates, for
relatively uncharted in a developing country context example the understanding of the dynamics of a host
although there is an emerging literature in this field community and its sense of ownership of mega sporting
(Matheson and Baade, 2004). However, such sources do events; the contribution that volunteering can make to
not really address how is volunteering is perceived and developing the human capital resident within a city or
managed across different cultural, political and economic community; and the value of volunteer tourism (a
environments (Bramante, 2004). phenomenon generally seen in a developing country
context) to host communities.
(4) Perceptions of volunteers among key stakeholder
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AUTHOR CONTACT DETAILS

Tom Baum
University of Strathclyde
Scotland
[email protected]

Leonie Lockstone
Victoria University
Australia
[email protected]

JOURNAL CONTACT DETAILS

Executive Editor
Charles Arcodia
[email protected]

IJEMR Website
www.ijemr.org

The International Journal of Event Management Research

is a double-blind, peer reviewed journal.
ISSN 1838-0681

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