Australian Journal of Adult Learning - Volume 63 - Number 3 - November 2023 - Social participation, altruism and learning opportunism: A phenomenography of adults’ learning through workplace experiences in rural community volunteering

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Aran

Workplace experiences are central to adults’ learning and development, and volunteering research highlights their significance for instrumental, social and altruistic purposes. The article investigates how community volunteers in an Australian rural social enterprise learn through workplace experiences, focusing on agency and lifelong learning alongside broader community benefits. Using phenomenography, it identifies learning incentives, processes, mechanisms and affordances embedded in social participation, altruism and rural associational life.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages30

Reading Time1 h 16 min

AccessFree to download

Introduction

Workplace learning through volunteering

Third sector settings and digital-era connectivity

Literature Review

Informal learning in volunteer work

Intentional vs incidental learning

Socially situated learning and organisational commitment

Australian Journal of Adult Learning Volume 63, Number 3, November 2023 Social participation, altruism and learning opportunism: A phenomenography of adults’ learning through workplace experiences in rural community volunteering Catherine Arden University of Southern Queensland Workplace experiences are central to adults’ learning and development, providing opportunities for significant and valuable lifelong learning. Research into adults’ learning in volunteer work attests to its significance and value across the spectrum of adult learning, serving instrumental, social, and altruistic purposes for the learner and enriching lives through furnishing individual, collective and broader community benefits. But how does adults’learning through workplace experiences in community volunteering contribute to their agency and lifelong learning while also generating wider collective benefits? What are people learning, and what are the learning incentives, processes, mechanisms and affordances at play? This article reports selected findings from a phenomenographic investigation into a group of community volunteers’experiences of workplace learning in a social enterprise in an Australian rural town coming to grips with transitioning to life in a digital era. The findings illuminate the experience of community-based workplace learning from the adult learner’s perspective, and specifically, learning embedded in social participation in rural community volunteering and associational life, providing new insights about adults’ experience of Social participation, altruism and learning opportunism: A phenomenography of adults’ learning 369 through workplace experiences in rural community volunteering learning through volunteering in the interests of understanding and furthering their own lifelong learning and development goals while contributing to their communities of interest, practice and place. Keywords: lifelong learning, adult learning, informal learning, community volunteering, community informatics, phenomenography Introduction Adults’experiences of volunteering are as diverse as the purposes for and circumstances of their engagement.Studies of volunteering in rural Australia report differences between volunteering in metropolitan and rural areas related to demographics and the nature of employment and associational life in rural communities, highlighting overlapping networks, fewer available resources and a preference for informal learning among rural volunteers (Kilpatrick et al, 2010; McLachlan & Arden, 2009; Davies & Lockstone-Binney, 2018).There are also different types of volunteers, ranging from “classic community volunteers” with a regular and sustained commitment to one or more groups or organisations to “episodic volunteers”, whose volunteering is likely to be more conditional on meeting their own needs (Schugurensky et al., 2010, p.82).Notwithstanding this diversity, when individuals choose to contribute their time and skills – or labour – to a local community group or organisation with a service mission, they are invariably participating in work activities, and concomitantly, workplace learning experiences. When considering settings for community volunteering, so-called‘third sector’, or ‘civil society’models – such as place-based learning communities, neighbourhood houses, men’s and women’s sheds, charitable organisations and other social enterprises – are well situated to afford the kinds of learning opportunities that cater for diverse adult learners’development needs, goals and lifespan trajectories. This article draws on the findings of an investigation into volunteers’experiences of workplace learning in a community organisation in an Australian rural town seeking to harness the possibilities presented by digital technologies and the Internet for enhancing social connectivity, 370 Catherine Arden community engagement and participation in lifelong learning among its residents.The focus of the st

FAQs

What is the main focus of the study described in the article?

The article examines how adults’ learning through workplace experiences in rural community volunteering contributes to learners’ agency and lifelong learning while also generating wider collective benefits.

How does the research define and investigate adults’ learning in volunteering?

It uses phenomenography to explore volunteers’ lived experiences, identifying learning incentives, processes, mechanisms and affordances embedded in social participation within a rural volunteering context.

What does the literature review highlight about volunteer learning outcomes?

It emphasizes that volunteer learning is typically informal yet broad and significant, often linked to confidence, self-esteem, personal agency, and organisational leadership skills.

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Aran