Volunteer selection and social, human and political capital: a case study of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games

Abstract

In the case of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games, 70,000 volunteers were selected from more than one million applicants and the majority were university students in Beijing (BOCOG, 2008). Drawing upon theories of social, human and political capital, as developed by Bourdieu (1986; 1991), Coleman (1988) and Putnam (2000) respectively, this research analyses how volunteer selection was practised at this mega event. In particular, the role of the three forms of capital in volunteer selection was examined through an analysis of policy documents, interviews with BOCOG staff and focus groups with university students who volunteered for the Olympic Games. This research contributes to the body of knowledge in the field, and also provides insights for practitioners in selecting volunteers for organising mega sport events and other activities that require a large number of volunteers.

Keywords:

• volunteers
• Olympics
• Beijing
• social capital
• human capital
• political capital

Notes

This includes Olympic venues, training camps and others.