From Seva to Cyberspace: The Many Faces of Volunteering in India. By Femida Handy, Meenaz Kassam, Sharjah Jillian Ingold, & Bhagyashree Ranade. New Delhi, India: SAGE Publications India, 2011. 251 pp. ISBN 9788132106982.From Seva to Cyberspace: The Many Faces of Volunteering in India by Femida Handy, Meenaz Kassam, Sharjah Jillian Ingold, and Bhagyashree Ranade is a useful addition to the literature on local volunteerism in different countries. The text is authored by scholars who have a deep understanding of volunteering in countries around the world, including the U.S., Canada, and India. They provide a deep analysis of the religious basis of volunteering in India, report on surveys about volunteering conducted across multiple countries (including India), and discuss case studies that highlight the theories and analysis presented in different chapters.The book's main strength is the way it coherently combines a review of the literature on volunteering, case studies, and an analysis of theories about volunteering in the Indian context. The book is well organized. It begins with a historical overview of volunteering in India, followed by a chapter on defining volunteering in the contemporary context. The subsequent chapters describe volunteers, including youth, corporate employees, and mature adults. It concludes with chapters on religious volunteering, the value of volunteering, and virtual volunteering. The book is well designed, allowing researchers to quickly orient themselves with volunteering in India.The examination of religious influence on volunteering in India is one of the highlights of the book, which provides both a historical and a contemporary analysis of the major role of religion in the country. Religion has a stronger influence on society in India than in countries such as Canada, where a significant percentage of citizens report no religious affiliation. Handy et al. start by explaining the origins of volunteering in India and its basis in religious beliefs, including Hinduism and the practice of charity, Islam and obligatory social duties, and Buddhism and ethical behaviour. In Chapter 6, the authors give a deeper analysis of religious volunteering and its inherent limitations, which include serving only one's own religious community and restricted involvement in more politically charged issues.The volunteering case studies provided at the end of each chapter are also extremely valuable, as they enhance the analysis with a personalized illustration of theory grounded in practice. One example that stands out is the Non Resident Indian Parents Association, a uniquely Indian organization, in Chapter 5. Moreover, the explanatory notes at the end of many of the case studies reconnect the cases to the preceding analysis, effectively providing further subjective rationale in the form of personal stories the chapter's conclusions for the reader.The primary limitation of the book is the small sample size of the surveys and the demographics of the surveyed population, which do not necessarily represent the broad and diverse Indian population. Notwithstanding the limitations of the sample size, the book does include surveys of volunteers, which contribute insight and knowledge to an area where additional empirical research is decidedly required. At the same time, as reported by the authors, a sample size of over 500 adults limits the ability to generalize for all of India, a country with a population of over one billion people. …
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Oct 1, 2020
Becky Harris + 4
Open Access
