The Causal Relationship Between Volunteering and Social Cohesion: A Large Scale Analysis of Secondary Longitudinal Data

Abstract

It is often taken for granted that social cohesion and volunteering are inextricably related. Previous research suggests both that social cohesion creates a conducive environment for volunteering to emerge and that volunteering itself facilitates feelings of social cohesion. Despite this, much of the existing evidence on this relationship is limited to cross-sectional research that precludes any assessment of potential causality. In this paper we present a secondary analysis of two large scale and longitudinal social surveys in the UK: the Understanding Society Household Longitudinal Study and the Beyond Us and Them project. Using data from these surveys we estimate a cross-lagged longitudinal model to assess the causal relationships between social cohesion and volunteering over time. Across both data sources, involving different time intervals, we find significant cross-lagged bi-directional relationships between social cohesion and volunteering. These findings provide much needed empirical support for the proposition that social cohesion and volunteering are causally related over periods of both months and years. Implications for theory and policy are discussed.

Social cohesion and volunteering: Correlates, causes, and challenges.

“…Overall, the analysis reveals consistent support for a positive relationship between social cohesion and volunteering. Longitudinal evidence supports arguments for bidirectional causality (Davies et al, in press). Higher levels of volunteering can drive increases in community-level social cohesion and vice versa.…”

“…Yet, the cross-sectional nature of the evidence in their review limits the confidence with which one can accept these causal propositions. We identified only three academic sources containing longitudinal data that provide evidence for possible causal effects of (components of) social cohesion on volunteering; one primary source (Nakamura et al, 2022) and two secondary sources (Ajrouch et al, 2016; Niebuur et al, 2018) and one forthcoming (Davies et al, in press). Nakamura et al (2022) provide causal evidence for the positive effects of social contact on later volunteering.…”

“…Despite such expectations, evidence for the impact of volunteering on cohesion is limited (Ramsey, 2012). Our review of evidence that volunteering can impact on social cohesion identified a total of six published and one forthcoming sources containing case study- and survey-based evidence; four academic (Davies et al, in press; DeMarco & Bifulco, 2021; Dolan et al, 2021; Millora, 2020) and three gray (DCLG, 2009; Donahue, 2012; K. Smith & Smith, 2021) sources.…”