Abstract
The phenomenon of voluntourism – a combination of travel and volunteering, most often in a country other than one’s own – is steadily becoming a more and more common trend. As such, it was timely to conduct an analysis on the messages that the organizations that operate these programs use to attract participants, and the underlying ideology conveyed within these. The purpose of this study was to examine the websites of three such organizations (Cross-Cultural Solutions, Global Citizens Network, and Global Volunteers) in order to identify and analyze the ideological characteristics that they present. By examining these from a postcolonial perspective, I critiqued the ways in which these sites rely on a framework of division between volunteer and host, as well as the propagation of unequal power relationships within this division, in order to encourage potential volunteers’ participation. I further compared these prevailing rhetorical strategies with the organizations’ mission and vision statements, revealing a lack of fidelity to the values that they profess therein.
Advisor
Boser, Beth
Department
Communication Studies
Recommended Citation
Bybee, Caroline M., "Going on a [Power] Trip: A Postcolonial Examination of Select Voluntourism Organizations' Rhetorical Strategies" (2015). Senior Independent Study Theses. Paper 6632.
https://openworks.wooster.edu/independentstudy/6632
Disciplines
Speech and Rhetorical Studies
Publication Date
2015
Degree Granted
Bachelor of Arts
Document Type
Senior Independent Study Thesis
© Copyright 2015 Caroline M. Bybee