The participation of older Europeans in volunteer work

Abstract

Today's discussion about the growing 'burden of ageing' must not neglect the substantial productive potential of the elderly population. Using micro-data from the new 'Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe' (SHARE), we explore crossnational patterns of volunteering and the relationship between selected sociodemographic characteristics and participation in voluntary work among the population aged 50 and older in 10 countries. Our analysis reveals a clear spatial pattern of volunteering (with higher participation rates in Northern Europe and lower ones in the Mediterranean countries) and shows that particularly age, education, health, and involvement in other social activities matter greatly for the individual's propensity to engage in volunteer work. Our conclusions stress the need to maintain a contextual perspective in future research on volunteering, accounting for the role of institutions and culture, and support policies and programs designed to encourage elder citizens to make use of their productive potential -for the benefit of themselves and society.

Do predictors of volunteering in older age differ by health status?

“…Whilst economists consider economic status as an effect of human capital (Becker 1964), according to Wilson and Musick's theory it should be treated as human capital because it qualifies individuals for voluntary work. The literature generally underlines, in agreement with resource theory, that older people with more human capital tend to volunteer more than those with less (Cutler and Hendricks 2000;Erlinghagen and Hank 2006).…”

“…Acknowledging poor health as a barrier to volunteering, authors report a significant relationship between health and volunteering, with volunteering being explained by better health. This positive association emerged when health was self-rated (Choi 2003;Erlinghagen and Hank 2006;Erlinghagen 2010;McNamara and Gonzales 2011), measured in terms of functional limitations (Choi 2003;Hank and Stuck 2008;Suanet et al 2009), or in terms of mental health (Butrica et al 2009;Ahn et al 2011;Thomas 2011). The relationship between volunteering in older age and the number of chronic diseases was less evident in terms of its statistical significance (Erlinghagen and Hank 2006;Okun and Michel 2006;Ahn et al 2011).…”

“…Examples of indicators of social capital, all of which increase the possibility of undertaking volunteering, include being married, having children, working in the labour market, and informal caregiving. These characteristics could also limit volunteering by decreasing the amount of time available, but according to resource theory, their effect on volunteering is positive (Wymer 1999;Warburton et al 2001;Erlinghagen and Hank 2006;Butrica et al 2009;McNamara and Gonzales 2011;Principi et al 2013). However, the role of informal caregiving is controversial in that there are some cases where a negative association with volunteering in older age has been reported (Burr et al 2005).…”

Inventory and analysis of definitions of social participation found in the aging literature: Proposed taxonomy of social activities

“…Although the volunteer rate has been shown to be lower among older people, older volunteers offer more time than younger volunteers (Statistics Canada, 2009). Even if current trends in socioeconomic (Erlinghen & Hank, 2006) and health disparities (Boneham & Sixsmith, 2006) have a major impact on opportunities for social participation, older adults' plans for retirement are more diverse than ever (Lesemann, 2007).…”

Pasts that last: The moderating role of education and former occupation for men's volunteering after retirement

“…While previous research has recurrently shown that, in general, retirement positively influences volunteering (Chambré, 1984;Choi, 2003;Erlinghagen & Hank, 2006;Hank & Erlinghagen, 2009;Mutchler, Burr, & Caro, 2003;Principi, Warburton, Schippers, & Di Rosa, 2012;van den Bogaard, Henkens, & Kalmijn, 2014), there are good reasons to suspect that this effect differs for people from various backgrounds. In social stratification research, the question whether is it mostly human capital or rather class that is at work as a differentiating factor in society has been debated extensively.…”