Slow Down Aging? Volunteer Work and Well-Being in Old Age

Objective: This study considers whether formal volunteering reduces the rate of health decline in later life.

Methods: Using the four waves of AHEAD data from a sample of 3,480 individuals aged 60 and over, growth curve models for health trajectories were estimated.

Results: Volunteering is associated with a slower rate of health decline among the elderly, measured as self-rated health, CESD scale, and cognitive function score. Specifically, volunteering over 200 hours per year at Wave 1 led to slower rates of decline for self-rated health and psychological well-being over the following three waves, and the duration of the volunteer work performed over the examined period of seven years had graded effects on all three outcome measures.

Discussion: The analyses suggest that both the amount and duration of volunteer work have an independent promoting effect on health condition, controlling for time-varying health measures and predictors for poor health at the baseline.