Introduction
Society tends to stereotype people with a disability as being vulnerable and needing protection (Agmon et al., Reference Agmon, Sa’ar and Araten-Bergman2016), a perspective that deliberately labels them as assistance or service “receivers” (Stroud et al., Reference Stroud, Miller, Schleien and Merrill2005). Advocacy groups that champion the rights of people with disabilities and government policies that seek to provide them with specifically focused benefit plans further contribute to these negative societal attitudes, as these actions often obscure the value of their contributions to society (Nario-Redmond, Reference Nario-Redmond, Bennett and Goodall2024). In contrast, highlighting the skills and successes of people with disabilities would change society’s perceptions.
A significant way that people with disabilities could contribute to society is by volunteering, such as providing administrative assistance for nonprofit organizations (Balandin et al., Reference Balandin, Llewellyn, Dew and Ballin2006). Such activities would allow people with disabilities to stay connected to society and also provide them with the opportunity to showcase their organizational, leadership (Lindsay et al., Reference Lindsay, Chan, Cancelliere and Mistry2018), team-building, and problem-solving skills (Lindsay, Reference Lindsay2016). For example, participating in environmental service activities can provide personal satisfaction as well as demonstrate a devotion to the environment (Miller et al., Reference Miller, Schleien, Rider, Hall, Roche and Worsley2002). Volunteering by people with disabilities can also provide role models that encourage others in similar positions to contribute (Kulik, Reference Kulik2018) and, most importantly, help break the societal stereotypes that label them as service or assistance “receivers.”
However, although participation in volunteer activities could benefit people with disabilities and allow for their societal inclusion, their impairments may restrict the type of work they can do. For instance, people with mobility impairments may find it difficult to participate because of inadequate transportation systems or adverse road conditions (Inclusive Design Research Center, 2017); people with visual impairments may need to be assisted by non-visual-impaired individuals, especially when going to unfamiliar places (Shandra, Reference Shandra2020), and some volunteer activities, such as disaster relief, which often involves hazardous conditions, may not be suitable for people with specific impairments. Therefore, as the opportunity to participate in volunteer activities for people with disabilities may be limited (Harkey et al., Reference Harkey, Carter, Barlow and Bentzen2007), organizations should consider the accessibility and support that volunteers with disabilities may need (Balandin et al., Reference Balandin, Llewellyn, Dew and Ballin2006).
Because people with disabilities in Thailand encounter similar negative attitudes and accessibility issues as those in other countries, they have limited opportunities to participate in society. However, the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) encourage social, economic, and political participation for all, especially SDG 10.2 and SDG 8.5, which promote quality employment and suitable jobs for everyone, and SDG 3.4, which emphasizes the importance of good mental and overall well-being (United Nations, 2015). Despite the enactment of the Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities Act in 2007, which aims to improve the quality of life for persons with disabilities in Thailand, a 2022 disability survey revealed that only 21.2% of working-age people with disabilities were participating in the labor force (National Statistical Office of Thailand, 2022). Given this low percentage, providing volunteering opportunities to people with disabilities could provide an avenue to social participation, allow them to develop essential skills, enhance their self-esteem, and expand their social networks. Therefore, volunteering should be seen as a vital path for fostering social participation, reducing social exclusion, and achieving the SDGs related to equality, employment, and health promotion.
There have been many studies examining the value of volunteering for people with disabilities, including research conducted in countries such as the United States, the United Kingdom, and Russia (Casseus et al., Reference Casseus, Cheng and Cooney2023; Marková, Reference Marková2020; Scharfenkamp et al., Reference Scharfenkamp, Wicker and Davies2025; Shandra, Reference Shandra2017). Previous research has highlighted the ways in which volunteering contributes to skills development, health improvement, and the expansion of social networks for people with disabilities. While these studies have established important insights into the benefits of volunteering and the role of agency in shaping participation (e.g., Yanay-Ventura, Reference Yanay-Ventura2019), less attention has been paid to how such experiences are shaped by cultural and socioeconomic contexts. In the Thai context, volunteering is embedded in moral and religious practices such as merit-making or Tham Bun, which shape how social value, contribution, and recognition are understood.
This study, therefore, examines how people with disabilities construct meaning around volunteering through their lived experiences and cultural practices, and how such engagement redefines their roles through involvement in socially valued activities, emphasizing agency and contribution within community life. In doing so, the study offers insights into how social participation and recognition are culturally mediated, providing a contextually grounded perspective that extends existing research on disability and volunteering by examining how these processes are shaped by broader cultural and social structures. The study is guided by the social role valorization (SRV) theory (Wolfensberger, Reference Wolfensberger2000), which posits that individuals are more likely to be accepted by society when they occupy valued and meaningful social roles.
Literature review
Social participation and inclusion
Social participation is defined as activities that connect people with others in the community (Levasseur et al., Reference Levasseur, Lussier-Therrien, Biron, Raymond, Castonguay, Naud, Fortier, Sévigny, Houde and Tremblay2022). Therefore, social participation is not only being physically present at a community activity but also feeling included, involved, and accepted by others. For people with disabilities, meaningful participation can promote health and well-being, challenge exclusion attitudes, and foster acceptance. The SRV framework (Wolfensberger, Reference Wolfensberger2000) posits that people can gain societal acceptance if they are assigned important and valued roles, which indicates that social participation is about deriving value from involvement. Therefore, SRV is the key framework used in this study to evaluate the ways that people with disabilities become accepted when they are involved in socially contributing volunteering activities.
Social inclusion occurs when people have equal opportunities to participate in civic, cultural, economic, and political activities (Osburn, Reference Osburn2006). However, such participation does not guarantee acceptance because social hierarchies and structures often shape the value placed on the participation (Cebula, Reference Cebula2025). SRV theory explains that the roles society assigns to people are not fixed, which means that they can overcome any social exclusion barriers by taking on roles that society values, such as volunteer or community helper positions. Therefore, people with disabilities who assume social contribution roles can alter and improve the societal attitudes that often devalue their abilities.
Volunteering and disability
Globally, people with disabilities participate less in volunteering activities than people without disabilities (Casseus et al., Reference Casseus, Cheng and Cooney2023). However, Australia may be an exceptional case, as a slightly higher proportion of people with disabilities volunteer through organizations (Volunteering Australia, 2024). The participation type for people with disabilities depends on their physical or mental condition, age, and social context (Casseus et al., Reference Casseus, Cheng and Cooney2023). Generally, those with invisible or less obvious impairments tend to have greater opportunities to participate in volunteering activities than those with physical or sensory disabilities (Shandra, Reference Shandra2017). In countries with stronger disability support systems, the volunteering rate tends to be higher than in countries with less or no support (Melbøe & Hardonk, Reference Melbøe and Hardonk2022). However, in developing countries such as Thailand, participation is limited by accessibility, structural challenges, and societal attitudes. Although the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) (United Nations, 2006) highlights the importance of equality in participation, there is limited evidence from diverse cultures and socioeconomic contexts, which has led to a poor understanding of the various factors that can influence the involvement of people with disabilities in volunteering.
Volunteering is more than just an activity to which people dedicate their time and resources for personal or societal benefits. When viewed through the SRV framework (Wolfensberger, Reference Wolfensberger2000), volunteering can enhance the social roles of people with disabilities because of the value they bring to the community. Volunteering can also provide people with disabilities with an environment in which to develop skills, expand social networks, elevate their self-esteem (Kulik, Reference Kulik2018; Yanay-Ventura, Reference Yanay-Ventura2019), and challenge society’s negative attitudes toward them. However, their social contribution can only be recognized if they are given support from institutions and society, which is a significant factor, as a lack of such support can prevent their active participation and increase their dependence on others (Cheah et al., Reference Cheah, Riches and Manokara2024; Marková, Reference Marková2020).
Policy and institutional support for inclusive volunteer
Even though government policies recognize the status of people with disabilities, volunteering provides a valuable avenue for the implementation of inclusive policies that seek to reduce the inequality highlighted in several of the UN’s SDGs, especially SDG 10. Target 10.2 promotes the social, economic, and political inclusion of all people, regardless of status or disability, and Target 10.3 focuses on the provision of equal opportunities and a reduction in discrimination (United Nations, 2015). The United Nations CRPD (United Nations, 2006) also stresses the right of people with disabilities to participate in community life. Therefore, volunteering organizations need to follow the CRPD Convention recommendations.
Inclusive volunteering can be a pathway to empowerment and social change. Mutual understanding and bias reduction can be achieved when people with disabilities and people without disabilities collaborate (Boland et al., Reference Boland, Potter, de Paor and Guerin2025). The advantages associated with inclusive volunteering align with the SRV framework, which implies that people who have valued community roles are more likely to gain access to more positive life opportunities, such as respect, acceptance, and more diverse social connections (Wolfensberger, Reference Wolfensberger2000). Therefore, inclusive volunteering can create an opportunity for people with disabilities to play significant community roles and enhance their societal image.
Volunteering and disability in Thailand
Volunteering is common in Thailand, possibly because of the country’s strong religious beliefs. Thai Buddhists believe that good karma leads to positive effects in both this life and future ones. Therefore, to ease their current hardships or prepare for a better life after their rebirth, Thais regularly seek opportunities to perform virtuous deeds to accumulate merit, which is known as “Tham Bun” (Cassaniti, Reference Cassaniti2015). Offering assistance to vulnerable people by donating money, food, clothing, and other essentials is a widespread community activity (Swearer, Reference Swearer2010), primarily because generosity and giving behaviors are seen as moral virtues that are widely praised in Thai society. However, these cultural practices may lead to the development of a patron–client hierarchical viewpoint in which people with disabilities could be perceived as people who only receive others’ mercy (Leeka, Reference Leeka2024).
Despite the many challenges, many Thai people with disabilities are actively contributing to society as volunteers in organizations for people with disabilities and through informal volunteering. The primary volunteer roles are as leaders of self-help organizations, peer supporters for others with disabilities, and trainers who educate the community about people with disabilities (Chantra, Reference Chantra, Alexander and Wajjwalku2023; Yokoyama, Reference Yokoyama2024). From the SRV perspective, it is uncertain whether these roles are acknowledged or whether they contribute to an improved societal image.
This study, therefore, also examines the extent to which the social contributions provided by Thai people with disabilities through volunteering improve their societal acceptance and shift their image from assistance recipients to social contributors. In addition, this study seeks to extend existing knowledge by offering a culturally grounded perspective, highlighting how the experiences of people with disabilities in Thailand are shaped by distinct cultural, social, and institutional conditions. Rather than focusing solely on participation outcomes, this research emphasizes how cultural norms, religious beliefs, and socioeconomic conditions influence both opportunities for volunteering and the social recognition derived from it.
Methodology
Research approach
This qualitative study investigates the social participation of Thai people with disabilities through their volunteer work. This study is grounded in a constructivist–interpretivist paradigm, which holds that reality is socially constructed and that meanings are shaped by individuals’ lived experiences and interactions (Burns et al., Reference Burns, Bally, Burles, Holtslander and Peacock2022). From this perspective, the study does not seek a single objective truth but instead aims to understand how people with disabilities interpret and make sense of their volunteering experiences within specific cultural and socioeconomic contexts.
Participants and volunteering activities
Data were collected from 65 participants: 25 organizational representatives (18 females, 7 males) who had previously worked with volunteers with disabilities; 30 volunteers (15 females, 15 males) with disabilities who are involved in activities organized by a disability organization; and 10 volunteers (six female, 4 males) with disabilities who are not affiliated with any organization. The volunteer activities that the participants engaged in for the organization for people with disabilities were public services, home visits to disabled and frail older people, and dealing with the donated items. These activities were small-scale, required little preparation, were usually completed within a day, and often required no specific skills.
Study sites and sampling process
To represent the activities in different regions of Thailand, the study was conducted in the provinces of Bangkok, Chon Buri, Khon Kaen, Chiang Mai, and Trang. The participant selection objective was to ensure diversity in gender and disability types (mobility, visual, and intellectual). As Thailand has no database of volunteers with disabilities, participants were recruited using the snowball sampling method. First, five organizations that provide support to people with disabilities were asked to recruit people with disabilities who had volunteering experience, which allowed for the recruitment of the specific people for the study’s needs.
Data collection
The data were collected from September 2023 to May 2024 using in-depth interviews and participatory observations. In-depth interviews were employed to explore participants’ personal motivations, perceptions, and experiences in depth. At the same time, participatory observations were conducted to understand their behaviors, interactions, and contextual dynamics within real volunteer settings. The interviews lasted between 60 and 90 minutes, depending on the informant’s ability to communicate and the nature of their story. However, to ensure understanding, the interviews with the participants who had intellectual disabilities were somewhat longer. The interviewers recorded the conversations. Transportation expenses of 300 THB were provided to each participant after the interview.
The questions for the participants from the organizations for people with disabilities focused on the volunteering opportunities and challenges for people with disabilities and the support provided by these organizations. The participant volunteers with disabilities were invited to share stories about how and why they decided to volunteer, their volunteering experiences, the benefits they feel they had gained, the challenges they had faced, and any suggestions they had for promoting social participation through volunteering activities. Participatory observation was used to document the volunteer activities of at least three times as many organizations selected for this study that cater to people with disabilities. Our observations included work divisions, possible barriers and solutions, feelings during the participation, and the public’s reactions. The volunteers with disabilities acknowledged our presence and provided written consent for their photos to be taken and for the field notes to be recorded. The field notes were taken at the end of each day to avoid distraction while participating in and observing the activities. The research team members sat together and shared the information they had observed.
Data analysis
The interviews were transcribed, and the accuracy was verified against the field notes to ensure data consistency, after which all personal identifiers were removed to protect the participants’ privacy. ATLAS.ti 22 software was used for the qualitative data analysis, which involved systematically organizing and coding the data, applying open coding, and identifying and interpreting patterns of meaning. We generated the codes using an inductive approach that aligned with the study’s objectives to examine motivation, identify the barriers to participating in volunteer activities, suggest strategies to overcome these barriers, and assess the value of volunteering in promoting the social participation and acceptance of people with disabilities.
From the thematic analysis, we organized the participants’ stories to capture the deep insights associated with our research goals (Naeem et al., Reference Naeem, Ozuem, Howell and Ranfagni2023). The main themes were developed based on the SRV framework, which emphasizes the importance of valued social roles in promoting dignity and participation. By incorporating the SRV framework into our analysis, we were able to gain a deeper understanding of the participants’ experiences and their contribution to their feelings of social acceptance and a positive self-image.
In line with the study’s focus on participants’ lived experiences and meaning-making, this approach is consistent with an interpretivist orientation, where themes are understood as constructed meanings rather than objective categories, and where participants’ narratives are central to the analytical process.
Results
Our findings are based on the data analysis of the in-depth interviews conducted with 65 informants, which included volunteers with various disabilities and representatives of the organizations that support them. The SRV framework was used to explain how people with disabilities can gain “value and social recognition” through volunteering activities. Three main themes were deductively derived from the participants’ experiences and our participatory observations: (1) negotiating barriers and pathways to participation; (2) empowerment, skills development, and role transformation; and (3) sustaining participation and gaining social recognition.
Negotiating barriers and pathways to participation
The pathway to volunteering for people with disabilities is not straightforward because they must confront and navigate various obstacles posed by their family, society, and the structural and physical environments. These challenges limit their physical movement and reflect the social perceptions many people have about people with disabilities. The SRV framework helped us understand how people with disabilities can strive to gain valued social roles in contexts in which they are often viewed as aid recipients rather than aid contributors.
Family was found to be a key factor influencing the social participation of people with disabilities. One participant said that their family often made decisions on their behalf about community participation. It was assumed that families do this to protect their disabled family member or sometimes out of fear of being judged by others.
My family did not allow me to engage with the community until I was 18 or 19. After I had a chance to step out of my home, I realized I should have done it earlier. I realized that there were many things I had not yet learned (Volunteer with disability).
This statement indicates that overprotecting disabled family members separates them from society, compounds their dependency, and, most importantly, restricts their opportunities for self-development. While families may have good intentions, they believe that people with disabilities are not ready to participate in society, which means that people with disabilities who wish to volunteer have to persist and prove themselves to increase their family’s confidence.
Initially, my mother hesitated to let me participate in volunteering activities because she was afraid I might get tired and no one would take care of me. I told her I would try. After she realized I could do it, her hesitation decreased (Volunteer with disability).
While many families try to keep their disabled family members at home, some families actively support their disabled relatives. A female volunteer with a disability reported that her husband takes her on his motorcycle over a long distance so she can participate in volunteer activities. Similarly, a daughter became a member of an organization for people with disabilities to engage in volunteer activities alongside her disabled mother.
Family, therefore, can either be an obstacle or assist family members with disabilities to become involved in volunteering. The SRV framework identifies the family as the first people to assess the social value of their disabled members. In reluctant families, family members with disabilities need to negotiate with their families to work in the community. However, when families support volunteering activities for family members with disabilities, this is a significant first step in the societal acceptance of people with disabilities.
The interview and participatory observation data analysis also identified several structural barriers that can affect the movement and participation of volunteers with disabilities in Thailand, especially transportation and access to the physical environment. In many parts of Thailand, the poor transportation system and road conditions can be difficult for some types of disabilities. As a result, these people stay at home to avoid the travel problems.
It was difficult for people with disability to travel because there was no footpath. People with mobility impairments were unable to get on the bus. If they would like to take a bus, a group of people must help lift them on and off. They may feel uncomfortable. At last, they may be too bored to leave their home (Volunteer with disability).
Traveling by car was also not suitable for one study participant because of their impairments and their financial limitations. For many Thais, motorcycles are more affordable; however, riding a motorcycle involves risks, especially when the weather and road conditions are unfavorable. For people in wheelchairs, the lack of suitable vehicles makes travel even more challenging. Only one organization we visited has a van with a lift to serve their wheelchair-dependent volunteers. Most volunteers in wheelchairs typically travel in the sidecar attached to the motorcycle, which generally takes longer and is riskier. One participant reported that they had been in an accident and were injured when their wheelchair fell from a sidecar.
Other significant factors that challenge the social participation of people with disabilities are geographical characteristics and the environments around the volunteering activity sites. Some areas are hilly, have only a small dirt road, or are inaccessible by car. During a participatory observation home visit with an organization for people with disabilities in southern Thailand, some volunteers were unable to participate due to the physical environment. These experiences suggest that the physical environment may unintentionally limit the ability to volunteer for Thai people with disabilities.
The SRV framework claims that the physical environmental and structural obstacles can be barriers to role acquisition. When people with disabilities cannot travel or have limited access to volunteering sites, their ability to take on social contribution roles decreases. These issues can result in confirming society’s perceptions that people with disabilities are incapable and solely reliant on assistance from others.
An organization for people with disabilities has a significant role in promoting the social inclusion of people with disabilities. Most organization leaders we spoke with are also people with disabilities who leverage their life experiences to inspire others with disabilities to overcome their self-imposed limitations and gain increased self-esteem through occupational training and volunteering. Their inspiration to help others with disabilities is a result of the hardships they used to face.
I thought I must help other blind people. I intended to find blind people in my community. I did not mind how hard it was. I could walk through the jungle. I must help them reach the same point as me (Organization for People with Disabilities representative).
An organization for people with disabilities conducts home visits to persuade people with disabilities to participate in various activities. Generally, they take a peer support approach, believing that people with a disability are better placed to persuade other people with a disability to become involved in community activities as there are “no feelings of discrimination between them” (representative of the Organization for People with Disability). This peer-to-peer approach was also echoed by the disabled volunteers themselves:
I told them, “If you do not develop yourself, you lie on the bed at home.” Being a bedridden person creates more of a burden to others. If they stood up to develop themselves, their dependency would be reduced bit by bit (Volunteer with disability).
The goal of the Thai organizations for people with disabilities is to reduce dependency and provide development opportunities so that people with disabilities can contribute to society. As a representative said, “After they were able to help themselves, they would help others.” Based on the SRV framework, these activities reflect the role transformation from assistance recipients to people who can inspire others to improve themselves.
We were unable to clearly define the role of the organizations for people with disabilities, as we were unable to determine how the organization resolves the identified structural barriers and transportation accessibility issues. However, witness accounts from the participants and our participatory observations indicated that these types of organizations play a significant role in reducing the dependency of people with disabilities by providing them with an opportunity to participate in society.
Empowerment and role transformation
Even though the volunteering activities in this study were small-scale and limited in scope, they provided opportunities for people with disabilities to showcase their abilities to the public. For example, a blind volunteer who joined an organization for people with disabilities in northeastern Thailand was a talented singer, so when visiting other people with disabilities, he sang for them. Some of the people who joined the activity sang along with him, some clapped, and others stood up and danced. He said, “Giving to others does not mean only giving things but also happiness.” His performance challenges the social stereotype that people with disabilities are unable to contribute. The SRV framework claims that helping others can provide new roles for people with disabilities that are accepted and valued by society.
Many participants said that their emotional well-being had improved through helping others. One participant conducted home visit activities to share their experiences of overcoming hardship, and even saved someone’s life: “I am very happy that I can save his life. He had an idea to commit suicide. I made him change his mind. I made him able to stand up again.” This indicated that helping others could increase the self-esteem of the volunteers with disabilities, with these mutually beneficial exchanges fostering positive, equal relationships between the volunteers and their clients.
Another form of volunteering was public service. For example, an organization for people with disabilities in southern Thailand organized a beach-cleaning event for beaches in a national park that are popular with both local and international tourists. The participants included volunteers with mobility and intellectual impairments and their caregivers, as well as staff from the national park. Participating in public activities increases visibility, which is also important for gaining societal acceptance. Additionally, being willing to help others by regularly volunteering in the same area can also familiarize the community with the contributions that people with disabilities can make. The organization for the blind in northern Thailand visits people with disabilities in mountainous areas. However, the poor road conditions mean that they can only travel by pickup truck. In the village, which took about three hours to reach from the foot of the mountain, the research team walked uphill and through rough terrain with the blind volunteers to visit the homes of the people with disabilities. The blind volunteers also helped carry various items, such as instant noodles, clothes, and a sack of rice weighing about 5 kilograms, and members of the research team assisted by carrying some of the items and providing an escort. As these volunteers regularly visit this village, the community recognizes them and greets them.
Many of the people with disabilities interviewed in this study developed their social, communication, and leadership skills through their volunteering activities. As one volunteer said, “Actually, I was afraid to talk to the public. After participating in volunteer activities with others several times, I became more confident in my thinking and speaking.” Volunteering helped them shift from being an aid recipient to someone who now has a positive influence on other people with disabilities. Role transformations for people with disabilities not only benefit the individual but also the whole family.
Currently, he has a job, a family, and is able to take care of his mother. Before this, she had to earn money to care for him by collecting garbage to sell to a recycling factory. He used to share that his life would not have changed if he had never met me (Volunteer with disability).
Volunteering aligns with merit-making, or “Tham Bun,” in Thai culture. Volunteering allows people with disabilities to participate in religious activities as merit-giving rather than merit-receiving, which challenges the former perception that people who give money, things, or assistance to those in need, including people with disabilities, do so out of charity. As expressed by a volunteer when asked about the motivation to participate in volunteering, “I want to make merit. It helps me feel relief.”
Sustained participation and gaining social recognition
The sustainability of involvement in volunteering activities for the people with disabilities we interviewed and observed varied depending on the availability of opportunities and support. As mentioned, most volunteer activities are conducted by organizations for people with disabilities, with the level of cooperation with the community, government, and private sectors being very low. Consequently, the limited support from outside, such as donations of daily necessities, does not guarantee an organization’s ability to continue to provide home visit activities. These organizations also lack sufficient financial support to be involved in public services. This finding indicates that there is a weak social connection between people with disabilities and Thai society because opportunities are generally provided from within disability support organizations. Viewed through the SRV framework, these conditions highlight the limitations faced by people with disabilities when seeking to access social roles and integrate with others in the community. This indicates that people with disabilities need greater support from the wider society.
It did not matter how they were disabled. Opportunity would allow us to improve our quality of life through education and occupation. We also need opportunities from society to participate in volunteer activities… I believe that people with disabilities can contribute to society (Volunteer with disability).
Many public service activities take place in Thailand on national holidays, such as Constitution Day, Mother’s Day, and Father’s Day, all of which are held in villages, communities, temples, government organizations, and the private sector. However, people with disabilities reported that their willingness to participate was generally overlooked for these events. The societal attitudes that see them as incapable result in unequal opportunities to socialize with others, and the lack of participation opportunities prevents them from taking on social value roles. Most importantly, this case highlights the societal perceptions that people with disabilities are incapable and dependent. “I stayed at home while my family members participated in cleaning our village. They do not allow me to join because there was nothing I could do,” said one volunteer with a disability.
Participants also emphasized that the opportunity to access socially valued roles was linked to a chance to receive support from the government and the private sector. Sufficient government and community support increases participation opportunities and enhances the socially valued role of people with disabilities.
We need opportunities from government organizations or the private sector to volunteer. Promoting organizations for people with disabilities would help. Most importantly, it can encourage people with a disability to leave their homes (Volunteer with disability).
The volunteers with disabilities we spoke to were not compensated for participating in the volunteering activities. To continue serving the community, they had to use their own resources, which means that generally their financial limitations prevented them from providing a full service and could affect their continued participation. Therefore, government financial assistance could help them work without economic barriers and also highlight the importance of the role played by people with disabilities.
We mainly paid from our pockets. I was not really serious about it. However, if the government provides us with financial support, we could do more volunteer activities than this. If we paid for everything from our pockets, we could not do activities continuously (Volunteer with disability).
People with disabilities also need society to treat them the same as others. In public, people avoid directly talking about their disability but invent words that seem more polite. From the perspective of people with disabilities, this behavior reduces their dignity. “To me, I feel like they separate us. I am OK if they call me a blind person instead of avoiding talking about it directly,” said one volunteer. Significantly, people with disabilities should not be viewed with pity because such a perspective devalues their ability and dignity.
We do not need anyone’s pity. We are human, but society made us indignant. The pity idea of people with disability passes from generation to generation, not only among people without disability but also among people with disability (Volunteers with disability).
We also found that there was a general lack of positive image enhancement, which is important to increase recognition and acceptance from the wider society where they volunteer. When the organizations for people with disabilities engage in volunteer work, they rarely promote their contributions to the broader community. Instead, they only share this on their social networks, which are visited mainly by their members. A participant suggested that highlighting the positive aspects of people with disabilities through mass communication channels would be beneficial. However, the way that stories about people with disabilities is presented needs to be changed to highlight their successes rather than just focusing on the hardships. Presenting a positive image and applauding the achievements of people with disabilities can increase the public’s awareness of their roles, which would reduce the stereotype that links impairment with inability.
Dramatic stories could draw attention from their customers, but the success stories of people with disabilities could serve as role models for both people with disabilities and non-disabled people. In the case of volunteer activities by people with disabilities, they can not only encourage people in society but also help them realize they are contributing to it (Organization for People with Disabilities representative).
A representative from an organization for people with disabilities said that to increase knowledge of their contributions and provide social recognition for people with disabilities and their members, they had the idea of engaging in trending social issues that attracted wider public attention, such as environmental concerns.
If blind people participate in an environmental volunteer activity, such as collecting garbage, they would not be able to participate fully. However, we can be role models and help draw attention from people without disabilities to preserve our world (Organization for People with Disabilities representative).
Participating along with others in the community was another way to increase the public awareness of the contributions being made by people with disabilities. Every village in Thailand has a broadcast tower that the village head uses to share messages with the residents. When our research team took part in a traditional Thai massage volunteer event in a northern Thai village, the village head announced it over the broadcast tower, after which older residents who wanted a traditional Thai massage gathered. This case is an example of how acceptance of people with disabilities from the wider society can be fostered by them becoming more involved in community activities that can enhance their visibility and value.
Discussion
This study examined the role of volunteering in promoting social participation and social recognition for people with disabilities in Thailand, for which the SRV framework was utilized as the analysis framework. The results revealed that volunteering could be a valuable mechanism for improving Thai society’s image of people with disabilities, from them being recipients of assistance to social contributors. However, the change process was found to be somewhat hindered by various factors: family attitudes, environmental structures, and private and government sector support.
The SRV framework (Wolfensberger, Reference Wolfensberger2000) claims that society accepts people when they are assigned a valued role. We found that volunteering provides opportunities for people with disabilities to demonstrate their abilities, altruism, and leadership, and thus enhance their image (Nario-Redmond, Reference Nario-Redmond, Bennett and Goodall2024). Serving the environment and others allows volunteers with disabilities to develop a new identity and shift societal perceptions from being regarded as recipients of help to becoming valued social contributors. This finding supports previous research, which found that volunteering could increase self-confidence and self-esteem (Casseus et al., Reference Casseus, Cheng and Cooney2023; Marková, Reference Marková2020; Scharfenkamp et al., Reference Scharfenkamp, Wicker and Davies2025; Shandra, Reference Shandra2017; Yanay-Ventura, Reference Yanay-Ventura2019). Therefore, volunteering by people with disabilities is a form of social empowerment and an opportunity to showcase their abilities.
Buddhist beliefs significantly influence Thai culture. Merit-making, or Tham Bun, is how Thai people express their beliefs in good karma. Nevertheless, people with disabilities are often viewed as recipients of mercy due to their impairments (Leeka, Reference Leeka2024). In contrast, volunteering in the community can shift their role to that of a merit-maker and social contributor, elevate their moral status, and allow them to be viewed as valued members of Thai society.
Family was found to have both positive and negative influences on the social participation of people with disabilities. Families that overprotect their disabled members limit their opportunity to socialize, whereas families that support their disabled members can help improve their self-confidence and independence. The SRV framework claims that a socially valued role arises from close relationships and acceptance. Therefore, understanding the social participation benefits that can be derived from volunteering by the family members of the disabled is important. At the community level, participating in volunteer activities, such as rubbish clean-ups and home visits to elderly people, allows people with disabilities to showcase their abilities, and conducting volunteer activities in the same community can reduce bias and promote understanding among community members (Lindsay, Reference Lindsay2016; Miller et al., Reference Miller, Schleien, Rider, Hall, Roche and Worsley2002).
The volunteers with disabilities who participated in this study have strong intentions to continue to contribute to society. However, they face structural barriers, such as transportation systems, a lack of easy access, and financial constraints. This finding aligns with other studies that found that the physical environment can significantly hinder accessibility for people with disabilities (Inclusive Design Research Center, 2017; Shandra, Reference Shandra2020). The SRV framework claims that these barriers prevent people with disabilities from fully fulfilling their valued roles. Notably, most volunteer activities are organized by agencies for people with disabilities; that is, there is a lack of government and private sector support. As insufficient institutional backing makes it challenging to sustain volunteering efforts, it is crucial to establish structural support to sustain the volunteering efforts of people with disabilities and achieve SDGs 10.2 and 8.5.
The results of this study confirmed that volunteering increases the self-confidence and self-esteem of people with disabilities. Significantly, it shifts their role from being assistance recipients to contributors. However, societal recognition of the value of people with disabilities in Thailand is limited, possibly because Thai media typically only publishes tragic stories of people with disabilities to draw public attention, rather than showcasing their abilities (Nario-Redmond, Reference Nario-Redmond, Bennett and Goodall2024). Sharing success stories about the volunteering efforts of people with disabilities is important to change societal attitudes. Combining a successful story with popular volunteering activities, such as environmental protection campaigns, can increase their visibility in society and potentially help reduce the negative attitudes toward people with disabilities.
This research expands the SRV framework by placing it within Thailand’s unique cultural and religious context. The “value” concept in SRV aligns with the social and moral aspects that are central to Thai society, in which ideas of virtue and merit are highly valued. For people with disabilities, volunteering serves a dual purpose: it creates social value and promotes spiritual merit. This duality demonstrates how Thai cultural values are linked with the SRV principles to foster inclusion. By recognizing the ethical and community-focused elements of volunteering, we can develop culturally aware and sensitive inclusion strategies in Thailand and similar societies.
Building on this culturally grounded interpretation, the findings also highlight key distinctions from existing studies. While much of the literature emphasizes formal institutional support and structured volunteer systems, the findings from Thailand point to the significant influence of informal networks, cultural values, and religious practices on participation. These findings suggest that pathways to social recognition for people with disabilities are context-dependent and may vary across cultural contexts.
Limitations
This study did not aim to investigate the causes of any disability, as such questions might have hurt the participants’ feelings. However, we made our conclusions from the information they voluntarily shared, their visible physical conditions, and their membership in an organization for people with disabilities. Most participants had visual and mobility impairments, and a few had intellectual and hearing impairments. Therefore, this study is less representative of the volunteering experience of people with all types of disabilities. In addition, purposive sampling and the snowball method were used to recruit participants from hard-to-reach populations and gain inside information. However, the study results cannot be generalized to the entire population of volunteers with disabilities in Thailand. Therefore, a mixed-methods research methodology that covers all types of disabilities should be applied in future research.
Suggestions and conclusion
This study suggests that people with disabilities in Thailand are both recipients and contributors of assistance. Volunteering offers many opportunities to connect with society, develop skills, and demonstrate their abilities. However, society’s attitudes, structures, and physical environment restrict their participation and recognition. Therefore, to enhance the social participation of people with disabilities, policy development must progress alongside efforts to raise public awareness about the disability population in Thailand.
As organizations for people with disabilities primarily start with volunteer activities that their disabled members can participate in, this limits the options for involvement. An inclusive volunteering concept should be applied to design activities across the entire process. Organizations serving people with disabilities, the government, and the private sector should collaborate to support inclusive volunteering for people with all disability types. Additionally, activities should not be limited to helping only vulnerable groups but should also include the broader society, such as environmental conservation, disaster prevention, or health promotion. These activities can make the contributions and valued roles of people with disabilities more visible to the public.
As noted, collaboration between organizations serving people with disabilities, the government, and the private sector is essential to create opportunities for people with disabilities to assume valued roles in society. However, the media also plays a key role in making these contributions more visible to the public. In the past, stories involving people with disabilities were usually shared to attract public attention; however, to shift the perceptions of people with disabilities in Thai society, the media should more actively promote their successes and social contributions. Society’s view of people with disabilities as recipients of aid should gradually change to recognizing them as valued contributors to society.
To maintain the social participation of people with disabilities through volunteering, it is essential to secure financial support from both the government and the private sector. This funding can be used to cover travel expenses, activities, and facility improvements, and would lessen the financial burden on the people with disabilities who want to volunteer but often have to pay out of their own pockets to participate. Such support would make volunteering by people with disabilities more than just a sporadic activity and would foster long-term sustainability.
This study explored the value of volunteering in promoting social participation by people with disabilities and in changing Thai societal perceptions. Volunteering can challenge negative societal attitudes by providing a platform for people with disabilities to showcase their skills, sacrifices, and leadership. However, the efforts of people with disabilities and the organizations that serve them are not adequate enough to impact the broader society. Structural, attitudinal, and environmental changes are necessary to enable people with disabilities to participate equally in the community.
The study’s results also expanded the SRV framework to the Thai society context. The social-valued role concept aligns with merit-making or Tham Bun in Buddhism, which teaches that good deeds are morally valuable. Consequently, when people with disabilities engage in community activities, they enrich their minds and moral values. Most importantly, inclusive volunteering and the social recognition of people with disabilities as valued contributors can assist in achieving SDGs 10.2, which focuses on social participation, and SDGs 8.5, which promotes the right to decent work and equality. Additionally, removing structural barriers, social stigma, and public access limitations is essential to enable people with disabilities in Thailand to assume an equal role as social contributors.
Funding statement
This project is funded by the National Research Council of Thailand (NRCT) under Grant number N32A660134.
Competing interests
The authors declare that there are no conflicts of interest regarding the publication of this study.
Ethical standards
Guideline questions and other required documents were submitted to the Office of the Committee for Research Ethics (Social Sciences), Faculty of Social Science, Mahidol University, Thailand (Certificate No. 2023/073.2704, granted on April 27, 2023).
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