Strengthening volunteer-professional collaboration

Background and purpose Universities and social work practices from five European countries work together in an education development project on supporting marginalized youth with the aim to strengthen the knowledge base for... [ view full abstract ]

Background and purpose
Universities and social work practices from five European countries work together in an education development project on supporting marginalized youth with the aim to strengthen the knowledge base for education in volunteer-professional collaboration. Therefore, two best practices of collaboration are under investigation. The basis for selection has been the different starting points for the collaboration: the volunteer in one and the professional in the other. The research aims to give insight in de competences of both volunteers and professionals necessary to work together to support others and contribute to the social inclusion of social work participants. Also, it will provide insight in the possibilities and complexities of volunteer-professional collaboration.
Method
The method used to research volunteer-professional collaboration is Learning History, a practice-based research methodology that is useful in researching complex issues. The goal of using learning history is to make tacit knowledge from different stakeholders explicit. By using informants’ own words, and presenting the outcomes to all stakeholders for reflection and feedback, a learning process occurs.
Results
In the case of the volunteer, it appears to be important that the volunteer is a rolemodel and a senior friend. Someone who is there to talk to, not teach. In the case of the professional, it becomes visible that the competences are focused on empowerment, trust and sensitivity to ethical dilemmas. Not only for the professional to be taught but the professional also must teach these competences to volunteers.

Conclusion and implications
The results will contribute to the wider discussion on the role of volunteers within social work. At this point the research is not yet in a stage to draw empirical based conclusions.

This paper is part of the symposium Volunteering from the perspective of social work participants.