ABSTRACT
This study investigates the motivations of volunteers in non-governmental organizations to help children with education and the unconscious sources of these motivations through a phenomenological approach. The study considers helping behavior as a phenomenon in two different categories: pure philanthropic activity for intrinsic satisfaction and contribution to the rational organization where social benefits and individual interests are identified. The Weberian tradition of institutional sociology emphasizes spiritual motivations as the legitimizing background of capitalism as the fundamental dynamics of the rationalization processes in a social economy. Social network theorists place great importance on the concept of solidarity as a moral motivation in the formation of industrial capitalism, an approach that strengthens the theoretical foundations of this study. In this context, structured interviews have been conducted with eight participants volunteering in civil society organizations in the Bandırma district of Balıkesir. The data were analyzed by categorical-systematic content analysis through MAXQDA 2020 software. Findings from the analysis indicate that a strong inclination toward pure philanthropic activity primarily characterizes participants’ motivations for helping. This result reveals that although the participants thought that they rationalized their helping motivation following the activities, spiritual qualities were consistently preserved.