Physical and Social Perceptions of the Neighbourhood and Youth Volunteerism: Canada’s Capital Region

Abstract

Youth are embedded within various ecological systems that may impact their philanthropic behaviour. This study employed online data from a sample of undergraduate students and traced the various pathways through which neighbourhood perceptions (e.g., social cohesion, satisfaction with amenities) related to formal and informal volunteering intensities. Path analyses revealed that neighbourhood cohesion directly predicted formal and informal volunteer frequency; as well, it mediated the relationship between satisfaction with neighbourhood amenities and informal volunteerism. Neighbourhood cohesion was strongly associated with informal volunteer intensity, whereas satisfaction with neighbourhood attractiveness did not relate to any volunteer outcomes. Neighbourhood characteristics may be important drivers of youth volunteerism, and thus stakeholders, organizations, and individuals should consider the impact of the social environmental context on shaping youths’ helping behaviour.Les jeunes font partie de divers systèmes écologiques qui peuvent influencer leur comportement philanthropique. Cette étude utilise des données recueillies en ligne à partir d’un échantillon d’étudiants de premier cycle afin de retracer les divers parcours par lesquels leur perception de leur quartier (par exemple, sa cohésion sociale, leur satisfaction par rapport aux services offerts) a une incidence sur leurs activités bénévoles formelles et informelles. L’analyse révèle que la cohésion sociale a comme effet d’augmenter le bénévolat formel et informel. En outre, la cohésion semble augmenter le bénévolat informel là où il y a satisfaction par rapport aux services offerts dans la communauté. En effet, il y a une forte corrélation entre la cohésion d’un quartier et le bénévolat informel. En revanche, la satisfaction à l’égard du pittoresque d’un quartier ne paraît pas avoir d’incidence sur le niveau d’implication philanthropique. Il n’empêche qu’en général un bon quartier peut motiver les jeunes à faire du bénévolat. Ainsi, les parties prenantes, les organisations et les individus devraient tenir compte du contexte socioenvironnemental sur le comportement philanthropique des jeunes.

Active Aging through Volunteerism: A Longitudinal Assessment of Perceived Neighborhood Safety as a Predictor among Older Adults, 2008-2018

“…These findings are consistent with previous literature examining the resource theory of volunteering [17,62] but also add to the existing literature on this topic. Previous studies have shown an association between volunteerism and other forms of social capital that foster volunteerism such as civic engagement and neighborhood factors such as social cohesion, social capital, and neighborhood connectedness [20,22,63]. In addition, previous work specifically examining this relationship cross-sectionally also found that perceptions of safer neighborhoods, which could be a proxy for social capital in the resource theory of aging, were associated with volunteerism among older adults [2,20].…”

Social cohesion and volunteering: Correlates, causes, and challenges.

“…It is also important to distinguish between formal volunteering (on behalf of an organization) and informal volunteering (arranged or committed without institutional management; Pearce & Kristjansson, 2019; Snyder & Omoto, 2008). Unlike Omoto and Packard’s (2016) definition, the civil society paradigm is limited to considering volunteering involving activities outside of people’s own household.…”

The Effect of High-Density Built Environments on Elderly Individuals’ Physical Health: A Cross-Sectional Study in Guangzhou, China

“…In addition, social interaction activities also represent an important mediating path that can affect health by providing social support and expanding social networks [ 79 ]. In Canada, Pearce and Kristjansson [ 80 ] reported a positive correlation between the scale of social networks and the availability of built-up environmental factors (such as parks and services), indicating that the scale of social networks may increase with the improvement of the availability of built up environmental factors in neighborhoods. The increase in the scale of social networks improves the possibility of informal meetings between the elderly [ 81 , 82 ] and meets the daily social needs of the brain, which plays a significant role in improving health outcomes [ 83 ].…”