Thirst : the motivation of university students to do voluntary work at the summer school organised by the missionaries of charity in Malta

Abstract

In writing this dissertation I engaged with the phenomenon of university students' motivation to do voluntary work. I focused on a particular experience of volunteering; that is, voluntary work at the summer school organised by the Missionaries of Charity in Malta. Through the stories of the participants, I presented an understanding of what is really the essence of the thirst or motivation that has to do with the 'summer camp' experience. The purpose of this study is to give a clear insight of the subject and hence also equip organizers, both of this particular experience and other experiences of voluntary experiences, with required resources to motivate more youths to do the voluntary work. The research revealed new aspects of motivation that were not emphasised in previous research, and that therefore are of an essence in the evolvement of the field.