ABSTRACT

Disaster volunteers are involved at every stage of the disaster life cycle making them an important contributor to community resilience (Helsloot and Reuitenberg 2004; McLennan et al. 2016). There is a growing body of research on disaster volunteerism to which researchers from numerous disciplines and fields of study (e.g. volunteerism scholars, sociologists, psychologists, historians, emergency management scholars) have contributed. Synthesizing the findings of this work yields insights as to the landscape of disaster volunteerism, particularly in the phases of response and recovery. This chapter will address two main questions. First, what does the research tell us about how volunteers engage during the phases of response and recovery. Second, how does the engagement of volunteers during response and recovery relate to community resilience. Finally, implications for practice and future research directions will be addressed.