April is National Volunteer Month! In today’s blog post, we explore the positive impacts that volunteering can have on mental health and wellbeing.
Volunteering describes “any activity in which time is given freely to benefit another person, group or organization” (Tabassum, Mohan and Smith, 2016). Someone can have a regular volunteer commitment (e.g. helping at a food bank each Friday) or volunteering can involve a one-time event or activity. Research and lived experience has shown that volunteering can have positive benefits on the wellbeing of those that volunteer.
Below we explore three ways that volunteering can contribute positively to wellbeing- through meaning, belonging, and as a protective factor.
Volunteering is a Meaningful Activity
As mentioned above, volunteering requires freely giving one’s time to another person, group or organization. Volunteer opportunities are rarely created “just because”; they are created because there is a need to fill. As such, volunteering can be meaningful for the volunteers themselves, as well as the organizations or groups that are hosting volunteers.
Volunteer opportunities can also help someone gain exposure to a topic or aspect of their community that they are interested in. For example, those who live in apartments or congregated settings may not have access to green space where they can garden. By volunteering with a community garden program, someone can gain access to an activity (gardening) that might be inherently meaningful to them, and which they would not have had the opportunity to participate in otherwise.
In their rapid evidence assessment, Stuart et al. (2020), highlighted several studies that found volunteering positively impacts sense of purpose and meaning in life. There seems to be a particularly positive impact of volunteering on a sense of meaning and purpose for those who have lost their jobs. For older individuals, volunteering may help address risk factors for depression and suicide which are associated with retirement and loss of social networks.
Volunteering to Build Belonging
In this sense, volunteering can also build belonging. In their recent work on the validation of a community belonging measure for adults and youth, Van Kessel et al. identify two ways of understanding and measuring community belonging: interpersonal belonging and context belonging. Volunteering can impact interpersonal belonging (e.g. belonging rooted in personal relationships) by exposing volunteers to new people and groups that they can build connections with. Interpersonal belonging is characterized by feeling valued, understood, and supported within relationships; volunteering can provide individuals with opportunities to feel valued and supported.
Context belonging, as described by Van Kessel, involves the connection to specific environments. Volunteering can also help someone develop these types of connections when the volunteer opportunities are based within specific location(s) or with specific groups.
Generally, regular volunteering can help to increase the number and quality of a person’s social relationships through consistent exposure and engagement.
Volunteering is Protective
Protective factors refer to circumstances or experiences that help to protect against the risk of suicide. Protective factors for suicide include positive self-esteem or a strong sense of self; supportive relationships with friends and family; and involvement in positive activities. Volunteering is protective because it contributes positively to these protective factors. Volunteering can help someone to build a strong sense of self by experiencing their own capabilities and success; it can build positive relationships with others; and volunteering itself is a positive activity that someone can be involved in.
Conclusion
This April and beyond, we encourage you to spend some time volunteering for a cause, or with an organization that is important to you. To learn more about volunteering, check out the references below, and to find local volunteer opportunities in Waterloo Region, visit www.volunteerwr.ca
References & Additional Resources:
Tabassum, F., Mohan, J., Smith, P. (2016). Association of volunteering with mental well-being: a lifecourse analysis of a national population-based longitudinal study in the UK. BMJ Open, 6.
Van Kessel, K, McDiarmid, S., Brown, D., Children and Youth Planning Table, Henderson, H. (2026). Validation of a community belonging measure for youth and adults. Journal of Community Psychiatry, 54.
7 reasons why volunteering is good for our mental health – CMHA Toronto