Volunteering in the front line of the Ukrainian refugee crisis. A brief report from Poland

Jan Domaradzki; Dariusz Walkowiak; Ewa Baum; Dominika Bazan

doi:https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2022.979751

Volunteering in the front line of the Ukrainian refugee crisis. A brief report from Poland

Abstrakt

This study aims to analyse the experiences and motivations of volunteers who supported Ukrainian refugees who fled to Poland. Our study was conducted among 196 volunteers in Poznan, Poland who answered questions regarding their experiences with voluntary service during the current refugee crisis and the reasons they became involved in volunteer efforts.We found that although the Polish state had no prior experience in welcoming refugees on a mass scale, the Russo-UkrainianWar has resulted in the emergence of “spontaneous volunteers” who have offred their help and assistance to the flood of refugees sweeping in from its eastern neighbor. We also found that because many Polish citizens believe that helping those in need should not rest solely on the
government there are twomainmotivations to volunteer: a general willingness to help and the willingness to volunteer on behalf of Ukrainian refugees. Finally, while this study highlights that in times of crisis, most people are primarily motivated by humanistic and democratic values, including altruism and public service, emotions also play an important role in influencing people’s decision
to engage in voluntary service.