Defining volunteering by the labor theory approach

This paper aims to review previous research on the definition of volunteering, and consider　the concept of volunteering from the viewpoint of labor theory. The main concern in previous　studies has been the nature and effects of volunteering. Previous studies in Japan have been　limited to the analysis of the phenomenon of volunteering, while approaches investigating　the essence of volunteering have been scarce. As this dearth of approaches represents the　fundamental weakness of volunteering studies to date, this study examines the concept of　volunteering as defined by labor theory. Labor has the substance of voluntary purposeful　relationship movement. In a capitalist society, labor appears as an independent form of wage　labor governed by the exchange-value principle. Conversely, the use-value aspect of labor appears in leisure activities. Accordingly, this paper demonstrates that the essence of　volunteering is labor based on the use-value principle.