The Role of the Saudi Family in Developing and Promoting the Culture of Volunteer Work among Its Children

(A Field Study in the City of Riyadh)

Abstract

The study aimed to identify the areas and motivations for volunteerism in the Saudi family, in addition to recognizing the nature of the volunteer programs and activities in which the children in the Saudi family participated, and the degree of the Saudi family’s contribution to building a culture of volunteering for its children, by revealing the mechanisms of the Saudi family in motivating its children to practice volunteering. Volunteering and shaping his skills, in addition to identifying the obstacles that limit the effectiveness of the Saudi family in promoting the values of volunteer work to its children. The study relied on the sample social survey approach, by drawing a deliberate sample of Saudi families in the city of Riyadh, which reached a size of (100) families. The field study was conducted by applying a questionnaire to the husband and wife, as they are the representatives of the marital unit in light of a number of criteria. The study concluded that the Saudi family in the study sample worked to enhance volunteer work in the hearts of its children by strengthening their positive selves towards active participation by supporting internal feelings of altruism. This contributed to strengthening children’s self-esteem in the Saudi family, which was positively linked to volunteer behaviors, as the study revealed that 67.4% of families in the study sample involved their children in various volunteer programs. It concluded that the obstacles that limit the effectiveness of the Saudi family in promoting the values of volunteerism to its children were as follows: parents’ excessive fear regarding their male and female children volunteering, the lack of sufficient time to practice volunteering, and the lack of sufficient awareness of the benefits of volunteer work among children. The study recommended the necessity of strengthening the family’s view of volunteering in a way that develops their spirit of belonging and initiative and builds confidence in the souls of its children.