Church involvement in volunteering

Abstract

Volunteering and church involvement in the social services is examined. The societal context of volunteering and its place as a social policy option is presented in terms of the involvement of community in helping to meet social need. Studies reporting the extent of such "citizen" involvement attempt to give an insight into the nature of volunteer involvement, both formally and informally. The role of churches in the community is similarly surveyed, posing the question of how religious belief influences adherents towards helping others. This study examined one Anglican congregation in Lower Hutt in terms of involvement in helping others. A sample of ninety individuals who had pledged money to the church completed self-administered questionnaires. In terms of those needing more help than they customarily get, by far the greatest concern expressed was for the elderly. The results showed that 57.8% regularly helped friends or neighbours with things that they could not do for themselves. Those less involved in the church, in terms of a feeling dimension, and those "low" in church attendance, were less likely to be involved in informal helping of friends and neighbours. 36.7% of the sample were currently involved as volunteers and at least 20% of the whole sample gave two or more hours per week to volunteer work. A further 31.1% had previously been involved as volunteers. 23.3% of the sample were willing to become more involved as volunteers. Those who had been Hutt residents for between ten and twenty years were the most likely to be willing to become involved,as were those without dependent children, those with "high" church attendance and those who had had experience as volunteers. Variables for religiosity did not seem to be related to respondents "volunteer status" measured in terms of actual volunteer involvement at some time. The salient variables were high socio-economic status, length of residence and occupational grouping. Conclusions about church involvement in volunteering were drawn from the study.