The Power of Sewing: Perceived Benefits of Making and Donating Face Masks during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

Demand for cloth masks exceeded supply at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Individuals in the United States voluntarily gave of their time, talents, and fabric supplies to mask fellow Americans. Our research seeks to understand what drove their prosocial behavior and what drove them to sew, in addition to investigating if sewing masks provided participants with any benefits especially related to their psychological well-being. This paper reports on the findings from qualitative interviews, which took place in April and May 2021. Nineteen female mask makers in the United States were interviewed virtually. Functionalist Theory and Uses and Gratifications Theory were applied to understand this prosocial behavioral response to a catastrophe. The themes that emerged from the data were: (1) Pursuit of Values; (2) Self Improvement; (3) Community Connections; (4) Psychological Benefits. These volunteer females believed that helping others is the most important value to them and it was why they participated in this volunteer activity. They believed their masks helped stop the spread of the virus. Making masks helped them to improve their self-esteem and knowledge. It also relieved their stress and made them feel connected with their communities during the pandemic. Making masks to donate was a positive experience for the participants of this study.