The Association Between the Onset and Ending of Volunteering on Loneliness and Perceived Social Isolation Among Older Adults: Longitudinal Evidence From the German Ageing Survey

Background: Existing literature explores the relationship between voluntary work, loneliness, and social isolation, but there is a lack of research on how the onset and cessation of voluntary work relate to loneliness and social isolation among older adults. Many in this population may discontinue volunteering due to various life circumstances, making it important to investigate the longitudinal significance of these transitions. This study aims to assess whether engaging in volunteer work during retirement age is associated with changes in loneliness and social isolation.

Methods: Longitudinal data were obtained from Waves 5 (Year 2014) and 6 (Year 2017) of the German Ageing Survey, focusing on middle-aged and older adults. The sample size (n = 6628) was limited to those aged 65 and above. Two groups were analyzed: the onset group, individuals who did not volunteer in 2014 but did by 2017 (188 individuals), and the cessation group, those who volunteered in 2014 but not by 2017 (307 individuals). Loneliness was assessed using the De Jong Gierveld tool, and perceived social isolation was measured using the Bude and Lantermann instrument. Asymmetric linear fixed effects (FE) regression analysis examined the associations.

Results: In an asymmetric FE regression analysis that adjusted for a multitude of time-varying covariates, an association was shown between the onset of volunteer work and decreases in loneliness (β = -0.07; p = 0.04) in older adults. In contrast, there was no significant association between the onset of voluntary work and changes in perceived social isolation. Also, there was no significant association between the cessation of volunteer work and changes in perceived social isolation or loneliness.

Conclusion: Our findings suggest that older adults who choose to volunteer may experience a decrease in self-reported loneliness. Further longitudinal studies are needed to confirm our present findings.