This document summarizes research from multiple longitudinal studies on the benefits of volunteering for volunteers. The research finds: 1) Volunteers tend to be healthier and happier than non-volunteers across Europe and in Germany, the Netherlands, and Switzerland. 2) Volunteering is associated with delayed retirement, as starting to volunteer often coincides with stopping paid work. 3) The data suggests volunteering substitutes for paid work rather than preventing unemployment. 4) Most differences in health, happiness and employment between volunteers and non-volunteers seem to be due to self-selection rather than causal effects of volunteering. Future research will aim to better estimate causal impacts.

1. What are the benefits of
volunteering for volunteers?
5th
SHARE User Conference
November 13, Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg

2. The project

Impact of the Third Sector as Social Innovation

Funded by the European Commission

Coordinated by Universität Heidelberg (Prof.
Helmut Anheier)

9 countries

3. Our team

Prof. René Bekkers

Arjen de Wit

Dave Verkaik

Danique Karamat Ali

4. The questions

Does volunteering keep you healthy?
 (reviews by Brown & Brown 2015, Bekkers, Konrath
& Smith, 2014, Jenkinson et al. 2013)

Does volunteering keep you happy?
– (Aknin et al. 2013, Meier & Stutzer 2008)

Does volunteering prevent you from
unemployment? And prevent you from retiring?
 (Paine et al. 2013, Strauss 2009)

5. How to estimate the benefits of
volunteering?

Estimates on cross-sectional data includes both
selection and causation

We cannot randomly assign people to be a
volunteer or not

Changes in volunteering and changes in outcome
variables

6. The data

Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE),
2004-2011

German Socio-Economic Panel (GSOEP), 1984-2011

Giving in the Netherlands Panel Survey (GINPS), 2002-2014

Longitudinal Aging Survey Amsterdam (LASA), 1993-2006

Swiss Household Panel (SHP), 1999-2013

British Household Panel Survey (BHPS) / Understanding
Society (US), 1996-2012

7. The data

Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE),
2004-2011

German Socio-Economic Panel (GSOEP), 1984-2011

Giving in the Netherlands Panel Survey (GINPS), 2002-2014

Longitudinal Aging Survey Amsterdam (LASA), 1993-2006

Swiss Household Panel (SHP), 1999-2013

British Household Panel Survey (BHPS) / Understanding
Society (US), 1996-2012

Today's special: only people aged 50+ in all datasets

8. Volunteers are healthier
SHARE
0
0.1
0.2
0.3
0.4
0.5
0.6
Non-volunteers
Volunteers
Across Europe...

9. Volunteers are healthier
SHARE DE GSOEP
0
0.1
0.2
0.3
0.4
0.5
0.6
0.7
Non-volunteers
Volunteers
...in Germany...

10. Volunteers are healthier
...in The Netherlands...
SHARE NL GINPS LASA
0
0.1
0.2
0.3
0.4
0.5
0.6
0.7
0.8
Non-volunteers
Volunteers

11. Volunteers are healthier
...and in Switzerland.
SHARE CH SHP
0
0.1
0.2
0.3
0.4
0.5
0.6
0.7
0.8
Non-volunteers
Volunteers

12. Volunteers are happier
Across Europe...
SHARE
0
0.1
0.2
0.3
0.4
0.5
0.6
0.7
0.8
0.9
Non-volunteers
Volunteers

13. Volunteers are happier
...in Germany...
SHARE DE GSOEP
0
0.1
0.2
0.3
0.4
0.5
0.6
0.7
0.8
0.9
Non-volunteers
Volunteers

14. Volunteers are happier
...and in Switzerland.
SHARE CH SHP
0
0.1
0.2
0.3
0.4
0.5
0.6
0.7
0.8
0.9
1
Non-volunteers
Volunteers

15. How about volunteering and
employment status?

16. How about volunteering and
employment status?
No job Job Retired
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
Non-volunteers
Volunteers
SHARE
Across Europe...

17. How about volunteering and
employment status?
No job Job Retired
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
Non-volunteers
Volunteers
No job Job Retired
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
GSOEP
...in Germany...
SHARE DE

18. How about volunteering and
employment status?
No job Job Retired
0
10
20
30
40
50
No job Job Retired
0
10
20
30
40
50
Non-volunteers
Volunteers
...in The Netherlands...
SHARE NL GINPS

19. How about volunteering and
employment status?
No job Job Retired
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
No job Job Retired
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
Non-volunteers
Volunteers
...and in Switzerland.
SHARE CH SHP

20. Selection or causation?

21. Selection or causation?
Hypothetical example of the development of well-being as a result of
causal influences of volunteering

22. Selection or causation?
Hypothetical example of the development of well-being as a result of
both causative influences of volunteering and selection processes

23. Changes in self-reported health status
SHARE
-0.05
-0.03
-0.01
0.01
0.03
0.05
Remain volunteering Quit volunteering
Start volunteering
**
***
Across Europe...

24. Changes in self-reported health status
-0.05
-0.03
-0.01
0.01
0.03
0.05
Remain volunteering
Quit volunteering
Start volunteering
-0.05
-0.03
-0.01
0.01
0.03
0.05
Remain volunteering
Quit volunteering
Start volunteering
SHARE DE GSOEP
...in Germany...

25. -0.05
-0.03
-0.01
0.01
0.03
0.05
Remain volunteering
Quit volunteering
Start volunteering
-0.05
-0.03
-0.01
0.01
0.03
0.05
Remain volunteering
Quit volunteering
Start volunteering
Changes in self-reported health status
LASA GINPS
...in The Netherlands...
-0.05
-0.03
-0.01
0.01
0.03
0.05
Remain volunteering
Quit volunteering
Start volunteering
SHARE NL
***
**

26. Changes in self-reported health status
SHARE CH SHP
...and in Switzerland.
-0.05
-0.03
-0.01
0.01
0.03
0.05
Remain volunteering
Quit volunteering
Start volunteering
-0.05
-0.03
-0.01
0.01
0.03
0.05
Remain volunteering
Quit volunteering
Start volunteering
***
***
*

27. Changes in subjective well-being
SHARE
Across Europe...
-0.05
-0.03
-0.01
0.01
0.03
0.05
Remain volunteering Quit volunteering
Start volunteering
***
***
*

28. -0.05
-0.03
-0.01
0.01
0.03
0.05
Remain volunteering
Quit volunteering
Start volunteering
Changes in subjective well-being
SHARE DE
...in Germany...
-0.05
-0.03
-0.01
0.01
0.03
0.05
Remain volunteering
Quit volunteering
Start volunteering
GSOEP

29. -0.05
-0.03
-0.01
0.01
0.03
0.05
Remain volunteering
Quit volunteering
Start volunteering
Changes in subjective well-being
SHARE CH
...and in Switzerland.
SHP
-0.05
-0.03
-0.01
0.01
0.03
0.05
Remain volunteering
Quit volunteering
Start volunteering

30. Changes in employment status

31. Changes in employment status
SHARE
Across Europe...
Into retirement
Into unemployment
Into employment-0.1
0
0.1
0.2
0.3
0.4
0.5
0.6
0.7
Remain volunteering
Quit volunteering
Start volunteering
***
***
***
*
SHARE

32. -1
-0.5
0
0.5
1
1.5
Remain volunteering
Quit volunteering
Start volunteering
Changes in employment status
SHARE DE
...in Germany...
GSOEP
-1
-0.5
0
0.5
1
1.5
Remain volunteering
Quit volunteering
Start volunteering
***
***
***
******
*
Into retirement
Into unemployment
Into employment

33. -1
-0.5
0
0.5
1
1.5
Remain volunteering
Quit volunteering
Start volunteering
-1
-0.5
0
0.5
1
Remain volunteering
Quit volunteering
Start volunteering
Changes in employment status
SHARE NL
...in The Netherlands...
GINPS
Into retirement
Into unemployment
Into employment
***
***
***
***
***
***
***

34. -0.4
-0.2
0
0.2
0.4
0.6
0.8
Remain volunteering
Quit volunteering
Start volunteering
-0.4
-0.2
0
0.2
0.4
0.6
0.8
Remain volunteering
Quit volunteering
Start volunteering
Changes in employment status
SHARE CH
...and in Switzerland.
SHP
Into retirement
Into unemployment
Into employment
***
*** *
*
***

35. Conclusions

Only moderate effects on self-reported health and
subjective well-being

Starting to volunteer goes together with retiring

SHARE data generally show substitution between
voluntary work and paid work

Most variance can be attributed to selection

36. Limitations

Different surveys have different questions,
survey modes, sampling etc.

Not a perfect measure of causality

37. Next steps

Look at variation between volunteers

Examine explanatory mechanisms

Compare different estimation techniques (fixed-
effects/first-difference, propensity score
matching, instrumental variables)

Pool all data

38. Next steps

Look at variation between volunteers

Examine explanatory mechanisms

Compare different estimation techniques (fixed-
effects/first-difference, propensity score
matching, instrumental variables)

Pool all data
→ mega-analysis

39. Thank you.
Report “Welfare impacts of participation”
available at www.itssoin.eu
Arjen de Wit
@arjen_dewit
a.de.wit@vu.nl