Volunteerism, mental health, and well-being in the lesbian, gay and bisexual community

Abstract

Volunteerism plays a vital role in connecting individuals with various communities to provide numerous forms of altruistic service across the US. However, little is known about the numbers of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender/gender diverse and queer+ (LGBTQ+) people who engage in volunteer roles and community engagement activities, and the impact this may have upon their well-being and mental health. This secondary analysis of lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) individuals (N = 71, weighted) from the 2018 General Social Survey compares volunteerism, mental health, and perceptions of well-being among LGB volunteers and non-volunteers. Findings reveal that as many as 49% of LGB people in the sample that had volunteer experience self-reported that volunteering activities resulted in a lower median number of days of poor mental health (four days in the last 30 days) when compared to the poor mental health reported by non-volunteers (eight days). Implications for the field of social work, volunteerism, and the potential impact upon LGBTQ+ individuals engaging in volunteer efforts are examined.

Policy, relationships, and well-being: Associations between mental health and main partner relationships among cisgender sexual minority men in the context of U.S. state-level policies.

“…Finally, these results suggest that SMM, particularly those in states with unsupportive LGBTQ+ policies may benefit from social programming that promotes civic engagement, increases community connectedness, and provides opportunities to engage in relationships. Community civic participation has been found to predict empowerment directly (Wagaman, 2016) and indirectly via social justice orientation (Lardier et al, 2023) among LGBTQ+ youth, and among Lesbian, gay, and bisexual adults, volunteerism has been associated with improved mental health (Gates & Dentato, 2020). Given that over 400 anti-LGBTQ+ bills have been introduced by state legislatures so far this year (American Civil Liberties Union, 2023), community-based organizations working with this population might consider programs that contribute to sociopolitical engagement, potentially improving overall mental health as well.…”

Lesbian, gay, and bisexual youth volunteering behaviors: Evidence from Northern Ireland

“…de Wit et al, 2022), older gay men and lesbians who volunteered had higher levels of selfreported mental health than those who did not, and gay men reported lower levels of psychological distress and higher levels of social support. Similarly, Gates and Dentato (2020) analyzed a small sample of…”

Fulfilling Two Needs With One Deed: The Psychological Effect of Volunteering on Persons with Physical Disabilities

“…Empirical studies found that volunteering participation might be helpful in improving the physical and psychological health of disabled people (Binder & Freytag, 2013;Borgonovi, 2008) as well as other marginalized or isolated groups, such as older adults (e.g., Jiang et al, 2020;Russell et al, 2019), LGBTQ+ individuals (Gates & Dentato, 2020), and the homeless (Morton & Cunning-Williams, 2009). Studies highlighted that volunteering-defined as "the act of freely doing something without remuneration that is intended to improve others' quality of life directly or indirectly, with the recipient being outside one's own household" (Cnaan & Park, 2016, p. 24)-may improve the mental health of individuals with disabilities because it makes the volunteers feel that they are physically and mentally capable of playing meaningful roles in the community (Drucker, 2006).…”