Many Danes have provided Corona assistance
Since the beginning of the Corona crisis, 54 percent of Danes have helped another in a Corona-related context. This is the result of an ongoing study from the Department of Sociology and SODAS at the University of Copenhagen.
"It is a significant amount, because the risk of helping is all the greater now," says Jonas Toubøl, a postdoc at the Department of Sociology and one of the researchers behind the study. The other researchers are Postdoc Hjalmar Alexander Bang Carlsen and Research Assistant Snorre Ralund, both from SODAS.
And precisely because of the risk of infection from helping one another, the researchers are surprised by the results.
- Shutting down the society could have resulted in a decrease in voluntary activities, says Jonas Toubøl.
Most - just about every third - have helped share information. According to Jonas Toubøl, it can be anything from sharing a Facebook post to helping the neighbor. Around every fourth Dane has helped people in isolation with errands such as shopping and dog airing. 65 percent have helped in their own network, making it by far the most popular means of help. By comparison, the second most - 16 percent - has helped through an association or voluntary organization.
- We often think that our civil society in Denmark is this association Denmark, where things happen in organized and formal groups. Therefore, it might surprise that the personal network is so important, says Jonas Toubøl.
About the project
The study 'Solidarity and voluntariness in the corona crisis' from the Department of Sociology and SODAS at the University of Copenhagen was done in collaboration with the Center for Voluntary Social Work and measures the Danes' voluntary involvement and solidary behavior during the Corona crisis.
Data collector is Statistics Denmark, which has sent questionnaires to 8.000 Danes' e-mailbox. The figures in this story are based on responses from 2.123 Danes.