Document Type

Article

Publication Date

1998

Publication Title

International Journal of Aging and Human Development

Volume

47

Issue

1

First Page

69

Keywords

Aged/psychology, Female, Humans, Male, Meta-analysis, North America, Personal Satisfaction, Volunteers/psychology

Last Page

79

Abstract

The current political-economic climate, which is generally supportive of both private and public sector down-sizing, increasingly demands that human service workers assess, engage, and creatively use consumer strengths and resources. This meta-analysis of thirty-seven independent studies provided the means of inferring not only that elder volunteers' sense of well-being seemed to be significantly bolstered through volunteering, but also that such relatively healthy older people represent a significant adjunct resource for meeting some of the service needs of more vulnerable elders, as well as those of other similarly vulnerable groups such as disabled children. Averaging across studies, 85 percent of the "clients" who received service from an older volunteer (e.g., peer-counseling of nursing home residents) scored better on dependent measures (e.g., diminished depression) than the average person in comparison conditions did (U3 = .847 [Cohen, 1988], combined p < .001). The policy implications of such beneficial effects among both older volunteers and the people they serve are discussed.

DOI

http://dx.doi.org/10.2190/VUMP-XCMF-FQYU-V0JH

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