King's College London

Professor Peter John and co-authors were awarded the Best Paper Prize by the Voluntary Sector Review for their research ‘Can storytelling encourage tolerance and intention to volunteer?’

The paper revealed the advantages and challenges of using online video content to encourage a change in social attitudes.

Confronted with short videos designed to highlight the work of volunteers, hear the story of a migrant to the UK, and encourage others to consider volunteering themselves, Prof John and fellow researchers found people responded positively in some aspects but negatively in others.

The researchers said the results showed the care needed when designing and utilising storytelling and video content when attempting to ‘nudge’ or shape attitudes and behaviours.

The research was co-authored by Toby Blume (Social Engine), Dr Dyana Mason (University of Oregon), and Marios Petropoulos (Social Engine).

In its citation, the judging panel from the Voluntary Sector Review praised the creativity of the paper and its original approach.

They noted: “[The paper] is well placed within the wider discussions on the topic and the range of experiments that have been tried in this area. There are some clear considerations of the implications for theory. It seems that careful attention has been paid to the design of the experiment and awareness of the limitations, both of the sample and the comparability of the different narratives.

“Despite being quite a technical paper it was well-written, well laid out, and engaging to read. Everything was well signposted and explained in a clear logical way. It makes an important contribution to the voluntary sector and volunteering literature.”