A social cure in the community: A mixed‐method exploration of the role of social identity in the experiences and well‐being of community volunteers

Bowe, Mhairi; Gray, Denis Pereira; Stevenson, Clifford; McNamara, Niamh; Wakefield, Juliet R. H.; Këllezi, Blerina; Wilson, Iain S.; Cleveland, Michelle; Mair, Elizabeth; Halder, Moon; Costa, Sebastiano

doi:10.1002/ejsp.2706

Cited by 72 publications

(123 citation statements)

References 81 publications

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“…Alongside direct peer support, clients also discussed how “just having peers there” provided feelings of reassurance. In line with Bowe et al [ 33 ], the presence of peers facilitated enhanced perceptions of social support and safety. Feeling adequately supported and safe are prerequisites for clients to feel confident enough to attend future exercise sessions independently and reach out to other social groups [ 34 ].…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 83%

Multi-Stakeholder Retrospective Acceptability of a Peer Support Intervention for Exercise Referral

Portman

Levy

Maher

et al. 2021

IJERPH

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Perceived social support opportunities are central to successful exercise referral scheme (ERS) client experiences. However, there remains a lack of guidance on how ERSs can embed social support opportunities within their provision. This study presents retrospective acceptability findings from a 12-week social-identity-informed peer support intervention to enhance perceived social support among clients of an English ERS. Five peer volunteers were recruited, trained, and deployed in supervised ERS sessions across two sites. Peers assisted exercise referral officers (EROs) by providing supplementary practical, informational, motivational, and emotional support to ERS clients. Individual semi-structured interviews were conducted with peers (n = 4), EROs (n = 2), and clients (n = 5) and analysed thematically. The analysis identified three primary themes. The first theme detailed how EROs utilised peer volunteers to supplement the ERS client experience. This theme delineated peer roles within the ERS context and identified salient individual peer characteristics that contributed to their success. The second theme described peer acceptability among the various stakeholders. Peers were valued for their ability to reduce burden on EROs and to enhance perceptions of comfort among ERS clients. The final theme presented participant feedback regarding how the intervention may be further refined and enhanced. Peers represented a cost-effective and acceptable means of providing auxiliary social support to ERS clients. Moving forward, the structured integration of peers can improve the accessibility of social support among ERS participants, thus facilitating better rates of ERS completion.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 83%

Multi-Stakeholder Retrospective Acceptability of a Peer Support Intervention for Exercise Referral

Portman

Levy

Maher

et al. 2021

IJERPH

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“…The relationship between well-being and collective identity would explain group membership as a protective factor where members find social support, cohesion, and a sense of communion together with the possibility of deploying collective coping mechanisms and social participation in the face of a disadvantageous social context ( Smith and Silva, 2011 ; Jetten et al, 2017 ; Atari and Han, 2018 ; Bowe et al, 2020 ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sense of Ethnic Belonging: Relation With Well-Being and Psychological Distress in Inhabitants of the Mapuche Conflict Area, Chile

et al. 2021

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Research has shown that experiences of discrimination cause harm to the health and well-being of people. In terms of the identity of members of a group, a positive evaluation of that group might involve devaluing the out-group as a way of raising the endo-group, causing discrimination toward the out-group. In the Chilean context, the Mapuche people have historically suffered discrimination and violations of their rights. The aim of this study was to assess the relationship between Collective Identity, perceived experiences of discrimination, psychological well-being and distress in the inhabitants of the Mapuche conflict zone according to their sense of belonging to their ethnic group (Mapuche, Mestizo, Caucasian). This descriptive, correlative, and cross-sectional study involved 200 participants, including 94 men (47%), and 106 women (53%), between the ages of 18 and 83 years old (M = 39.02; SD = 13.45), who had lived for at least 1 year in communities in the Araucanía Region. The sample was stratified according their sense of ethnic identity, including 30% Mapuche, 33.5% Caucasian, and 36.5% Mestizo. The results show that participants with a sense of Mapuche ethnicity experienced more instances of discrimination, had a greater sense of collective identity, and that they also supported the Mapuche social movement and its methods. Based on evidence that well-being is directly related to collective identity, the study undertook a regression analysis of emotional distress and the psychological well-being of participants. The interaction between experiences of discrimination and collective identity has a significant influence. Collective identity and experiences of discrimination in themselves as well as the interaction between them, predict psychological well-being. The results suggest that the importance of the Mapuche group’s identity phenomena are related to a broad socio-historical context that leads them to identify themselves as a collective in conditions of inequality. This relationship between well-being and collective identity could be explained by their sense of cultural belonging, which can be a factor in protecting mental health.

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“…Past research suggests that such strategies are likely to produce a positive effect, as a large amount of time devoted to volunteering activities is a predictor of burnout (63). A recent study has shown that people’s sense of community commitment is often a reason for sustained engagement and that cohesive community relationships are particularly relevant for continuous volunteering over time (30). Yet, and despite the extensive literature on the factors influencing participation in volunteering (64), the predictors of volunteering during the pandemic may be slightly different from others forms of volunteering (45).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The benefits of such forms of community volunteering seem to go beyond the context of the pandemic conditions, with previous research suggesting that volunteering may benefit mental health and survival, fostering well-being and life satisfaction (29), as well as sense of belonging (30). In this study, we focus on a broad definition of COVID-19 volunteering, to capture the multiple ways people engaged in community support and mutual aid groups, as well as in community champions programmes.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

What have we learned so far about COVID-19 volunteering in the UK? A rapid review of the literature

Mao

Fernandes‐Jesus

Ntontis

et al. 2020

Preprint

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BackgroundCommunity engagement and volunteering are essential for the public response to COVID-19. Since March 2020 a large number of people in the UK have been regularly doing unpaid activities to benefit others besides their close relatives. Although most mutual aid groups emerged from local neighbourhoods and communities, official public institutions also fostered community volunteering, namely through the community champions scheme. By considering a broad definition of COVID-19 volunteering, this article describes a systematic review of the literature focused on two broad questions: What have we learned so far from COVID-19 volunteering both at the UK national level and the more local community level? What have we learned from engagement with local communities and community champions during the COVID-19 period?MethodsA rapid review of the literature in peer-reviewed databases and grey literature was applied in our search, following the PRISMA principles. The search was conducted from 10 to 16 of October 2020, and sources were included on the basis of having been published between January and October 2020, focusing on COVID-19 and addressing community groups, volunteering groups, volunteers, or community champions in the UK.ResultsAfter initial screening, a total of 40 relevant sources were identified. From these, 28 were considered eligible. Findings suggest that food shopping and emotional support were the most common activities, but there were diverse models of organisation and coordination in COVID-19 volunteering. Additionally, community support groups seem to be adjusting their activities and scope of action to current needs and challenges. Volunteers were mostly women, middle-class, highly educated, and working-age people. Social networks and connections, local knowledge, and social trust were key dimensions associated with community organising and volunteering. Furthermore, despite the efforts of a few official public institutions and councils, there has been limited community engagement and collaboration with volunteering groups and other community-based organisations.ConclusionsWe identified important factors for fostering community engagement and COVID volunteering as well as gaps in the current literature. We suggest that future research should be directed towards deepening knowledge on sustaining community engagement, collaboration and community participation over time, during and beyond this pandemic.

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A social cure in the community: A mixed‐method exploration of the role of social identity in the experiences and well‐being of community volunteers

Cited by 72 publications

References 81 publications

Multi-Stakeholder Retrospective Acceptability of a Peer Support Intervention for Exercise Referral

Multi-Stakeholder Retrospective Acceptability of a Peer Support Intervention for Exercise Referral

Sense of Ethnic Belonging: Relation With Well-Being and Psychological Distress in Inhabitants of the Mapuche Conflict Area, Chile

What have we learned so far about COVID-19 volunteering in the UK? A rapid review of the literature

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