Mobilising (and immobilising) giving in pandemic and austerity Britain

Abstract

Set in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic and UK austerity, this paper explores maps of giving and mobilised resources alongside interview narratives to examine the various energies that support and/or hinder giving. Conceptualising giving as a form of mobility, we find that individual acts of giving have the potential to generate momentum and positive feedback loops – given the right circumstances – to create highly energised mobilities of giving. We also find, however, that mobilities of giving are affected by wider contexts of austerity and perceptions of state non-giving. Indeed, our interviews suggest that state non-giving may act as an important (though not insurmountable) counterweight to individual giving. Overall, we argue that some level or at least perception of governmental generosity is needed to maintain individual giving, but that, in practice, state and civil society are often working in opposite directions.