Volunteer participation among older adults in Japan: An analysis of the determinants of participation and reasons for non-participation

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to examine participation in volunteer work among older adults in Japan; in particular, to identify the determinants of volunteer participation and reasons for non-participation. Subjects were 593 older peoples aged 60–74 residing in a suburb of Tokyo, Japan. Multivariate logistic regression analyses were conducted to examine the relationship between relevant characteristics and volunteer participation. Among females, those who had lived in the community longer, residing in a single household, actively participating in hobbies or continuing education, not working and reporting better self-rated health were more likely to participate in volunteer activities. By contrast, there were no specific correlations among males. 51.0% of the non-participants reported that they would like to participate in volunteer work in the future. The most frequently given reason for non-participation was “Don’t have time to participate”. Additional concerns were related to accessibility such as “Don’t know where I should go to participate”. For promoting volunteer activities among older Japanese, diverse volunteer activities should be offered with consideration to differences in lifestyle by gender and also by available flexible time. A plan for improving the accessibility to volunteer work is also needed.