To discuss the fourth issue of the ERNOP Research Note, we have once again teamed up with the Philanthropisms podcast from Why Philanthropy Matters. Hosted Rhodri Davies, it gives you a snapshot of what is happening in European philanthropy academia.
Featuring interviews with:
- Marlou Ramaekers about how parents & partners encourage and influence informal volunteering,
- Nina Sooter about whether Virtual Reality could be a powerful new tool for fundraising,
- Livia Ventura about how we can apply a theoretical lens to understand the nature of B Corporations better.
The podcast includes discussions on the following Research Notes:
How socialization influences informal volunteering
Authors: Marlou Ramaekers – Radboud University | Ellen Verbakel – Radboud University | Gerbert Kraaykamp – Radboud University
Provided by: Katy Adams from the University of Heidelberg
Concerns have been raised over the potential decline of community life. This study discusses the impact of parents and current partners on behaviours during adulthood that foster social bonds. The study questions whether parents and partners modelling and encouraging prosocial behaviour affects adults‘ informal volunteering.
Virtual Reality can drive an increase in the value of donations
Authors: Nina Sooter – University of Geneva | Giuseppe Ugazio – University of Geneva
Provided by: Rebecca McMurray
This paper investigates whether virtual reality is more effective than traditional forms of media at increasing the value of donations. Virtual reality gives participants the feeling of being immersed in a virtual world. The authors compared the donor behavior of people viewing a setting via Virtual Reality or on a computer screen (i.e. traditional forms of fundraising). The authors focus on the following question: Does using virtual reality as a fundraising medium increase the likelihood and value of donations?
The rise of benefit corporations as the new form of firm altruism
Author: Livia Ventura | University of Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership | University of Geneva
Provided by: Theresa Gehringer from SKKG Stiftung für Kunst, Kultur und Geschichte
Over the past decade, companies have increasingly recognized the importance of achieving positive environmental and social impacts beyond generating profits. In response to civil society’s demands, new hybrid organizational forms such as the “benefit corporations” have emerged in the U.S. These corporations are characterized by a governance structure that incorporates altruism into the decision-making processes. As such, benefit corporations represent a new governance model that goes beyond philanthropy and corporate social responsibility. The voluntary inclusion of a “public benefit” for society and the environment in the corporate purpose is the main characteristic of such organizations.