Do Women Perceive a Payoff from Working without Pay? A Gender Comparison of Perceived Career Outcomes of Sport Volunteering

Katrin Scharfenkamp (), Pamela Wicker, Tim F. Thormann and Larissa E. Davies
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Katrin Scharfenkamp: Department of Sports Science, Bielefeld University, 33501 Bielefeld, Germany
Pamela Wicker: Department of Sports Science, Bielefeld University, 33501 Bielefeld, Germany
Tim F. Thormann: Department of Sports Science, Bielefeld University, 33501 Bielefeld, Germany
Larissa E. Davies: Sport Industry Research Centre, Sheffield Hallam University, Sheffield S1 1WB, UK

Sustainability, 2022, vol. 14, issue 19, 1-17

Abstract: Gender equality among volunteers and in the labor market are essential for social sustainability. This study examines whether women value benefits of sport volunteering for their job market situation significantly differently than men. Based on signaling and social role theory, we hypothesize that women are more likely to value sport volunteering as a job market signal and as useful for career options than men. According to human capital and ecological systems theory, we hypothesize that this link depends on women’s age and national gender equality. An online survey targeting volunteers in European football clubs (in seven countries; n = 16,989) was conducted. Logistic regressions are estimated to analyze the factors affecting respondents’ agreement that sport volunteering ‘looks good on their CV’ or ‘allows to explore new career options’. The findings show that women are significantly more likely to value sport volunteering as a job market signal but are significantly less likely to explore new career options than men. While older women are significantly less likely to agree, women living in more gender equal countries are more likely to agree. Our findings indicate a link between the male dominance in sport volunteering and the job market, which is determined by social sustainability.

Keywords: gender; volunteering; job market; social role theory; social sustainability; signaling theory; human capital; age; national gender equality (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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