The investigation at hand puts a sociological civility concept on the
landscape of third sector and civil society research to address a
crucial question. In its most simplified wording: does voluntary
engagement actually indicate civil attitudes? In theoretical terms the
attitudinal dimension of civility is grasped as a belief in the
possibility of a common good. Empirically, a broad set of survey
questions related to law and rights, tolerance, helping and respecting
others, and questions on how decisions should be taken, are analyzed.
The author has found - across France, Germany and the United States -
that the response pattern towards these questions is better explained by
educational effects than by the question whether or not someone is
engaged in voluntary associations. This study suggests that civil
society should be researched not only as a residual category - a third
sector consisting of associations which are neither state nor market -
but also as a specific cultural project which has a measurable value
related dimension.