Volunteering and Subsequent Health and Well-Being in Older Adults: An Outcome-Wide Longitudinal Approach

Eric  Kim; A.V.  Whillans; Matt  Lee; Ying  Chen; Tyler  VanderWeele

Article | American Journal of Preventive Medicine | August 2020

Volunteering and Subsequent Health and Well-Being in Older Adults: An Outcome-Wide Longitudinal Approach

by Eric Kim, A.V. Whillans, Matt Lee, Ying Chen and Tyler VanderWeele

Abstract

Background: Growing evidence documents strong associations between volunteering and favorable health and well-being outcomes. However, epidemiological studies have not evaluated whether changes in volunteering are associated with subsequent health and well-being outcomes.
Methods: Data were from 12,998 participants in the Health and Retirement Study—a large, diverse, prospective, and nationally representative cohort of U.S. adults age >50. Using multiple logistic-, linear-, and generalized linear regression models, we evaluated if changes in volunteering (between t0;2006/2008 and t1;2010/2012) were associated with 35 indicators of physical health, health behaviors, and psychosocial well-being (in t2;2014/2016). Models adjusted for sociodemographics, physical health, health behaviors, psychosocial factors, personality, as well as volunteering and all outcomes in the pre-baseline wave (t0;2006/2008). Results accounted for multiple testing and data were analyzed in 2019.
Results: Over the 4-year follow-up period, participants who volunteered ≥100 hours/year (versus 0 hours/year) had reduced risk of mortality and physical functioning limitations, higher physical activity, and better psychosocial outcomes (higher: positive affect, optimism, purpose in life and lower: depressive symptoms, hopelessness, loneliness, infrequent contact with friends). Importantly, volunteering was not associated with other physical health outcomes (diabetes, hypertension, stroke, cancer, heart disease, lung disease, arthritis, overweight/obesity, cognitive impairment, chronic pain), health behaviors (binge drinking, smoking, sleep problems), and psychosocial outcomes (life satisfaction, mastery, depression, negative affect, perceived constraints, living with spouse, contact with other family/children).
Conclusions: With further research, volunteering is an activity that physicians might suggest to their willing and able patients as a way of simultaneously enhancing health and society.

Keywords: volunteering; prosocial behavior; well-being; health; Behavior; Health; Welfare or Wellbeing;

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Kim, Eric, A.V. Whillans, Matt Lee, Ying Chen, and Tyler VanderWeele. "Volunteering and Subsequent Health and Well-Being in Older Adults: An Outcome-Wide Longitudinal Approach." American Journal of Preventive Medicine 59, no. 2 (August 2020): 176–186.

The COVID-19 global pandemic continues to alter how people spend their time, with possible downstream consequences for subjective well-being. Using diverse samples from the United States, Canada, Denmark, Brazil, and Spain (n = 30,018) and following a preregistered analytic plan, we find notable gender differences in time-use, with women and especially mothers spending more time on necessities such as childcare and household chores than fathers during the pandemic. We also provide longitudinal evidence that young women engaged in less active leisure in the initial weeks of COVID-19 compared to young men, and that these differences in active leisure predicted lower subjective well-being one month later (n = 924). Together, these data represent one of the most rigorous empirical investigations examining how time-use relates to well-being during the forced lockdowns created by the COVID-19 pandemic. By focusing on time—a critical but largely overlooked resource—these results point toward underexamined inequalities that policymakers and organizational leaders should carefully consider when designing policies now and post-COVID-19.

Article | American Psychologist | 2020

COVID-19 and the Workplace: Implications, Issues, and Insights for Future Research and Action

Kevin M. Kniffin, Jayanth Narayanan, Frederik Anseel, John Antonakis, Susan Ashford, Arnold B. Bakker, Peter Bamberger, Hari Bapuji, Devasheesh P. Bhave, Virginia K. Choi, Stephanie Creary, Evangelia Demerouti, Francis J. Flynn, Michele J. Gelfand, Lindred Greer, Gary Johns, Selin Kesebir, Peter G. Klein, Sun Young Lee, Hakan Ozcelik, Jennifer Louise Petriglieri, Nancy Rothbard, Cort W. Rudolph, Jason D. Shaw, Nina Sirola, Connie R. Wanberg, Ashley V. Whillans, Michael P. Wilmot and Mark van Vugt

The impacts of COVID-19 on workers and workplaces across the globe have been dramatic. This broad review of prior research rooted in work and organizational psychology, and related fields, is intended to make sense of the implications for employees, teams, and work organizations. This review and preview of relevant literatures focuses on (a) emergent changes in work practices (e.g., working from home, virtual teamwork) and (b) emergent changes for workers (e.g., social distancing, stress, and unemployment). In addition, potential moderating factors (demographic characteristics, individual differences, and organizational norms) are examined given the likelihood that COVID-19 will generate disparate effects. This broad-scope overview provides an integrative approach for considering the implications of COVID-19 for work, workers, and organizations while also identifying issues for future research and insights to inform solutions.

Keywords: COVID-19; work; work from home (WFH); Pandemics; Health Pandemics; Employees; Working Conditions; Organizational Change and Adaptation;

Citation:

Kniffin, Kevin M., Jayanth Narayanan, Frederik Anseel, John Antonakis, Susan Ashford, Arnold B. Bakker, Peter Bamberger, Hari Bapuji, Devasheesh P. Bhave, Virginia K. Choi, Stephanie Creary, Evangelia Demerouti, Francis J. Flynn, Michele J. Gelfand, Lindred Greer, Gary Johns, Selin Kesebir, Peter G. Klein, Sun Young Lee, Hakan Ozcelik, Jennifer Louise Petriglieri, Nancy Rothbard, Cort W. Rudolph, Jason D. Shaw, Nina Sirola, Connie R. Wanberg, Ashley V. Whillans, Michael P. Wilmot, and Mark van Vugt. "COVID-19 and the Workplace: Implications, Issues, and Insights for Future Research and Action." American Psychologist (2020). View Details

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Over the last two decades, global wealth has risen. Yet, material affluence has not translated into time affluence. Instead, most people today report feeling persistently “time poor”—like they have too many things to do and not enough time to do them. This is critical because time poverty is linked to lower well-being, physical health, and productivity. For example, in our analysis of 2.5 million Americans, subjective feelings of time poverty had a stronger negative effect on well-being than being unemployed. However, individuals, organisations, and policymakers often overlook the pernicious effects of time poverty. Billions of dollars are spent each year to alleviate material poverty, while time poverty is often ignored or exacerbated. In this Perspective, we discuss the organisational, institutional, and psychological factors that explain why time poverty is often under appreciated. We argue that scientists, policymakers, and organisational leaders need to devote more attention and resources toward understanding and reducing time poverty to promote psychological and economic well-being.

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Volunteering and Subsequent Health and Well-Being in Older Adults: An Outcome-Wide Longitudinal Approach

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