September 9, 1999 | Read Time: 3 minutes
People ages 50 to 75 say that volunteering and community service are among their top priorities during retirement, but relatively few of the people in that age group currently participate in such activities regularly, according to survey results released last week.
Half of the 803 Americans polled in the survey said that they consider helping non-profit organizations to be “fairly important” or “very important” in their retirement years, second only to traveling among their priorities. Most likely to volunteer: women and people with college educations.
Over the next few decades, charities could see an increase in the number of older people who want to volunteer, the report predicted. It said Americans who have not yet retired place a higher priority on volunteering than do those who have already retired. That finding points to “a trend toward greater civic involvement among older adults in the 21st century,” the report said.
The survey, conducted by Peter D. Hart Research Associates, was commissioned by Civic Ventures, a public-policy group in San Francisco that encourages older people to work with charities, particularly those that help children.
The survey found that 74 per cent of those interviewed currently volunteer, but about half of that group do so on a limited basis, volunteering several times a year or at one-time events. Only a third of those who now volunteer do so several times a month or more.
Those polled said that their most common forms of volunteer service were raising money (43 per cent); helping old people (40 per cent); working with children and young people (32 per cent); and aiding groups involved in local issues (26 per cent).
Thirty-nine per cent of those who do not currently volunteer said that their biggest obstacle to doing so was a lack of time. Twenty-three per cent said such service required too much of a commitment; 11 per cent cited problems in finding activities suited to their skills and interests; and 10 per cent said that they had never been asked by a charity to help.
“In a national climate dominated by concern over the fraying fabric of American society,” the report said, “our country cannot afford to overlook this pool of talent.”
The report urged non-profit organizations to find new ways to recruit volunteers who are nearing retirement.
“The challenge to fully engage this potential social force in addressing America’s needs lies in front of us and will require rethinking some of our most basic assumptions about what retirement and later life will mean in the next century.”
Nearly two-thirds of those interviewed said they would consider spending 15 hours a week in community service if they were offered financial or other benefits, such as weekly stipends, education credits, or reduced costs for prescription drugs.
The report suggested that charities interested in recruiting retirees as volunteers would be wise to emphasize the personal benefits that come with community service. The reason: Those polled gave high ratings to “feeling vital and physically active,” “maintaining social connections and friendships,” and “feeling valued and needed” as they aged.
Charities could also do more to cultivate potential volunteers before they retire. The report said that nearly three-fourths of those surveyed said they had no plans to move after retirement.
“Today’s older Americans represent a tremendous reservoir of potential community activism,” the report concluded. “Their physical health and vitality — coupled with their having more relative discretionary time than other Americans and a strong desire to feel challenged and needed in later life — make them excellent candidates for volunteering and community service,” the report concluded.
For a free copy of the report on the survey, “The New Face of Retirement: Older Americans, Civic Engagement, and the Longevity Revolution,” contact Civic Ventures, 425 Second Street, Suite 601, San Francisco 94107; (415) 430-0141.
