COVID-19 and the voluntary sector

Submission deadline: 30 October 2020

Voluntary Sector Review (VSR) invites original research notes on COVID-19 and the voluntary sector for a rapid publication in early 2021. 

The COVID-19 pandemic has profoundly altered many aspects of the voluntary sector: disruption to normal life, social distancing, lockdown measures, furlough, job losses and economic crisis have profoundly affected how voluntary sector organisations operate. These factors have also had short- and long-term effects on individuals’ volunteering and donating behaviour. There is an unprecedented and immediate need for up to date evidence and new theoretical understanding of the current situation, yet scientific research and publication can take a long time. To address this need, Voluntary Sector Review is experimenting with Research Notes as a new format of publication. 

We invite scholars from across the globe to submit short Research Notes on their research related to COVID-19 and the voluntary sector. We are seeking Research Notes that make a clear and original contribution. We are seeking submissions with promising empirical research findings as well as theoretical discussions that help us to understand the potential consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic for the voluntary sector. 

The Research Notes can include research outputs which cannot be considered as full research or methodology articles. For example, they can present intriguing initial observations, time-sensitive results, advance a new idea, theoretical perspective or methodological approach. They can also describe new data available for other scholars or publish a brief summary of a study that is usually difficult to publish (e.g. with non-significant results).

Preparing your Research Notes 

Research Notes may follow a less strict structure than full papers but still need to make a valuable contribution to the study of the voluntary sector. We ask that all Research Notes submissions:

• Include an abstract
• Include references 
• Are short to medium-length (2000 to 4000 words)
• Follow VSR manuscript formatting guidelines

You can find the VSR formatting guidelines in our instruction for authors.

Submission instructions 

Submission deadline: 30 October 2020

Please type ‘Research Note’ at the top of your manuscript, then submit it through Editorial Manager, as a ‘Research article’.  

Further details on how to submit are available in our instructions for authors. 

All research notes will undergo a fast track peer-review. A selection of 3-5 notes will be published in March 2021 issue and the rest will be scheduled for publication in the following issues. 

For pre-submission queries, prospective contributors are encouraged to contact the corresponding editor Dr Daiga Kamerāde: d.kamerade-hanta@salford.ac.uk