Volunteers Are More Likely to Get Involved in Civic Activities

Chronicle of Philanthropy

September 15, 2010

People who volunteer for charities are also more likely to be involved in other civic activities, according to a new study.

For example, more than 20 percent of volunteers contacted a public official in 2008 compared with only 7.1 percent of nonvolunteers, says a report on the study, "Civic Life in America: Key Findings on the Civic Health of the Nation."

More than 29 percent of volunteers also served as officers or members of a committee, compared with only 4.4 percent of nonvolunteers, it found. The Web also contributes to volunteerism: More than 30 percent of adults who use the Internet volunteer, compared with 14.3 percent of those who do not.

The report, the first of its kind, was issued by the Corporation for National and Community Service and the National Conference on Citizenship. It was drawn up to comply with a provision of the Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act, which was signed into law last year.

It draws largely on statistics collected by the Current Population Survey conducted annually by the U.S. Census Bureau and the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

The report is accompanied by a new Web site that offers a fresh look at key measures of U.S. civic life, showing how states stack up in areas such as volunteering, voting, group participation, and working with neighbors to fix community problems.

The data show that Utah had the highest rate of volunteering in 2009 (44 percent), while Alaskans were the most likely to participate in groups (46 percent) and Minnesotans the most likely to vote (73 percent).

Web-site visitors can take a quiz to see how much they know about the habits of their fellow Americans in areas like volunteering, exchanging favors with neighbors, and eating with people in their households.

Visitors can also upload their scores to their Facebook or Twitter pages to share with friends.