Elderly volunteering and well-being: A cross-european comparison based on SHARE data

Abstract

This paper, based on Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE) data, analyzes the relation between volunteering and well-being among 30,023 Europeans aged 50 and above in 12 countries. There is an overall positive correlation between volunteering and perceived health, life satisfaction, and self-life expectancy and a negative correlation to depression. However, in some countries the correlation is much stronger than in others. © 2009 International Society for Third-Sector Research and The Johns Hopkins University.