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Health and Social Benefits of
Volunteering
Beth Welbes
University of IllinoisCenter for Prevention Researchand Development
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Overview of Volunteerism
Volunteering is any activity in which time isgiven freely to benefit another person, group
or cause Rate of volunteerism has been stable or
rising slightly over the last 25 years
In 1998, 56% of the US populationvolunteered in the prior 12 months(Wilson, 2000)
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In your own experience, what benefits haveyou derived from being a volunteer?
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Health Benefits Documented inResearch (Wilson, 2000)
Improved life satisfaction
Improved self-esteem and self-efficacy
Improved self-rated health status Improved educational/occupational achievement
Solidarity and social interaction Dealing with own fears and apprehensions
around a health issue (e.g. AIDs, cancer)
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Mentor Program Volunteers (2007)
Mentors reported the following to a great extent
Look forward to seeing my mentee (84%)
Contribute to the community (75%)
Positive impact on youth (53%)
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Community Coalition Volunteers (2000)
Coalition members reported each of the following as amajor or moderate benefit
Making the community healthier (88%)
Getting more info about community services (76%)
Fulfill responsibility to the community (73%)
Sense of satisfaction in being involved in animportant project (70%)
Social support from other with similar values (68%)
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Benefits to Older Adults(Thoits & Hewitt, 2001)
Compared to non-volunteers:
Higher life satisfaction
Stronger will to live Greater feelings of self-respect
Fewer symptoms of anxiety and depression
Lower mortality rate (63% lower in one study)controlling for health factors that affectmortality
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Effects of Volunteering on Youth(Wilson & Musick, 2000)
Reduced problem behavior amongvolunteering youth (e.g. truancy, drugabuse)- did not find same reductions inproblem behavior with social club involvementor team sports
Early volunteering increases probability ofbecoming politically active as adults
Family ethic of social responsibility has a
positive effect on civic commitment
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Cautions and Limitations
More is not always better too many hours can leadto role strain and reduced subjective well being
Type of work can make a difference (restorative vs.stressful)
Most research has been cross-sectional (associationrather than causation)
Most measures of health and well being are singleitems rather than scales (though depression hasbeen measured with a validated scale)
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If you have had a positive volunteer experience, whatwere the reasons it was so positive?
If you have had a negative volunteer experience, whatwere the reasons it was so negative?
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Best Practices in VolunteerManagement (Hager & Brudney, 2004)
Regular supervision and communication withvolunteers
Liability coverage or insurance protection forvolunteers (if dealing with people)
Regular collection of volunteer hours and # ofvolunteers
Screening and matching volunteers to theassignment
Face to face invitations (Wilson, 2000)
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Best Practices in VolunteerManagement (Hager & Brudney, 2004)
Written policies and job descriptions
Recognition activities
Annual measurement of volunteer impact Training and professional development for
the volunteers
Training for paid staff in working withvolunteers
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References
Hager, MA & Brudney, JL (2004). Balancing act: The challengesand benefits of volunteers. Urban Institute - Washington, DCwww.urban.org.
Musick, MA & Wilson, J (2003). Volunteering and depression:
The role of psychological and social resources in different agegroups. Social Science & Medicine, 56, pp 259-269.
Thoits, PA & Hewitt, LN (2001) Volunteer work and well being.Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 42(2), pp 115-131.
Wilson, J (2000) Volunteering. Annual Review of Sociology, 26,pp 215-240.
Wilson, J & Musick, M (2000). Effects of volunteering on thevolunteer. Law & Contemporary Problems, 62, pp 141-168.
http://www.urban.org/http://www.urban.org/