RTI International - News Release - 6.19.2006

Women More Likely Than Men to Volunteer

Utah has highest volunteering rates

RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, N.C. -- Women, particularly mothers and those who work, are more likely than men to serve as volunteers for programs to assist the elderly, tutor youth and provide support following disasters, according to a new study.

The study is the most significant assessment of volunteering conducted in America and the first to analyze volunteering habits by state and region. Data were based on a national survey from 2002 to 2005.

As part of the study, researchers at RTI and the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS) collaborated to produce the report, "Volunteering in America: State Trends and Rankings." The report is intended to serve as a tool to assist organizations in developing a strategy to increase volunteerism in their organization and build the national service and volunteer infrastructure in their respective states.

Researchers found that more than 65 million Americans, almost 29 percent, performed a volunteer service in 2005, an increase of nearly six million people since 2002.

In every state, females volunteered at significantly higher rates than did males. Nationally, more than 32 percent of women volunteered, compared with 25 percent of men. The research showed that the most committed age group was Americans 35 to 44 years old.

The report also showed that Utah, Nebraska, Minnesota, Iowa and Alaska had the highest volunteer rates respectively during 2003 to 2005. Nevada had the lowest volunteer rates followed by New York, Louisiana, Florida and West Virginia.

"We also discovered that the busier people's lives are the more likely they are to volunteer, be that through their workplace, church, community or children's school," said Nathan West, M.P.A., RTI researcher and lead author of the report.

American volunteers reported spending a median of 50 hours per year volunteering, and gave a total of 8.2 billion hours of volunteer service during 2005. More than 35 percent of volunteers said they volunteered as coaches, referees, tutors or mentors. About 35 percent of respondents said they volunteered primarily through religious organizations, with 26 percent of volunteers giving time to educational or youth-related organizations.

"Volunteers provide an important service to our country," West said. "CNCS hopes that states, communities and nonprofit organizations will use the information in the report to develop a strategy to increase the level of individual engagement in volunteer activities as well as to create more volunteer opportunities."

The study, conducted by CNCS, is based on data obtained from the U.S. Census Bureau and Bureau of Labor Statistics through a "volunteering supplement" to the Current Population Survey (CPS) from 2002 to 2005. The volunteer supplement is administered annually to approximately 60,000 households nationwide.