The latest study by the Civil Society Research Center comes at a time when more civic and political involvement is needed to defend European and democratic values. We have chosen to highlight below some of the findings of the report which are of particular importance in the context of the results of the first round of the presidential elections, but in addition to these, the report details a number of issues of relevance to civil society, funders, but also policy makers who wish to contribute to increasing civic engagement of citizens and strengthening European democratic values.
Thus, the results of the study show a close link between the level of civic engagement and the number of civic organizations in the country, indicating a mutually reinforcing relationship. Consequently, a stronger civil society can also have rever reverberations in the level of citizens’ involvement in the community, providing more structured opportunities for community engagement.
The study also shows that the preferred way for citizens to get involved is by signing petitions, posting on social media, and volunteering for non-governmental organizations, the latter being more frequent than contacting politicians or participating in debates and protests. This indicates that volunteering is a popular way for people to get involved in the functioning of society. Moreover, volunteering for non-governmental organizations plays an important role in building confidence in the individual’s ability to influence policy decisions and participate in the political process (referred to in the literature as political efficacy). People who volunteer believe to a greater extent that they can influence political decisions and actively participate in the political process compared to people who are not involved in volunteering. Although the causality between volunteering and own policy effectiveness cannot be determined, the correlation indicates a mutually reinforcing relationship.
At the same time, volunteering and small donations (e.g. 2-4 euro SMS donations) can be seen as low-barrier gateways to greater civic engagement overall. Interventions to encourage these “small acts of civic engagement” could be more accessible for those who are reluctant to participate. Micro-donations, signing petitions or taking part in one-off events can also boost a sense of belonging, increasing confidence in your own political effectiveness.
When it comes to volunteering, the effect of education and income level is obvious. But, unlike in education, where we see a clearer “dividing line” between those with higher education (including post-secondary) and those with middle or high school education (the latter being less likely to volunteer), in terms of income levels, we see that those with very low and high incomes are the most likely to volunteer.
Moreover, while there is anecdotal evidence of civic engagement fueled by dissatisfaction and distrust in institutions, our data show that both trust in others and trust in institutions (in general, not in a particular government, parliament or president in particular) are higher among those who are more civically engaged and especially among those who volunteer.
Thus, the results indicate that citizens perceive involvement in volunteering as an important lever for achieving positive societal change, but also that volunteering can have positive effects on confidence in one’s own political effectiveness, increasing trust in our fellow citizens and in institutions, being (together with donation) a gateway to greater civic engagement overall.
The authors of the study, Dr. Lev Fejes, Dr. Bogdan Radu, Dr. Daniela Angi, DrD. Melania Leșe, MA Bartok Szilárd, and Prof. Gabriel Bădescu invite you to download and read this study, realized with the support of the Romanian American Foundation. We hope that our findings and recommendations will be useful and contribute to positive changes in the practice of organizations, funders and policy makers.
The current context shows that civic engagement is not a luxury, but a necessity. We all need to act, whether as practitioners, community leaders or concerned citizens. Together, we can build a more inclusive and stronger Romania, where people work together to shape a brighter future. Now is the time to engage, to trust and to lead decisively. The future of democracy in Romania depends on it!
The Center for Civil Society Research is a program of the Center for the Study of Democracy, supported by its strategic funding partner, the Romanian American Foundation. Developed in response to the needs of the sector, the Civil Society Research Centre’s mission is to develop the skills of non-governmental organizations in the collection and use of relevant and reliable data to address pressing societal issues. To achieve its objectives, the Centre develops and publishes open access research, develops and provides training, data collection and analysis tools and resources for measuring impact, as well as specialized research consultancy services.
