Who tends to volunteer and why? What causes attract certain types of volunteers? What motivates people to volunteer? How can volunteers be persuaded to continue their service? Making use of a broad range of survey information to offer a detailed portrait of the volunteer in America, Volunteers provides an important resource for everyone who works with volunteers or is interested in their role in contemporary society. Mark A. Musick and John Wilson address issues of volunteer motivation by focusing on individuals' subjective states, their available resources, and the influence of gender and race. In a section on social context, they reveal how volunteer work is influenced by family relationships and obligations through the impact of schools, churches, and communities. They consider cross-national differences in volunteering and historical trends, and close with consideration of the research on the organization of volunteer work and the consequences of volunteering for the volunteer.

This dataset is the first in a series of several data collection efforts aimed at learning more about the lives of adults who live in Texas. Data collected in 2004 contains information on seven major aspects of Texas life : (1) A series of questions on civic engagement and attitudes, such as voting behavior, jury service, and attitudes towards the institution of the jury. (2) A large module of questions related to volunteering. Inquiry was made on how and how much respondents volunteer, their reasons for volunteering, and the ways they go about finding opportunities to do so. This module also asks about organizational memberships and giving behaviors. (3) Personality dispositions and attitudes related to violence and other issues. (4) Physical and mental health status. (5) Information regarding health behaviors, such as diet and exercise, and the frequency in which respondents regularly engage in various activities. (6) Questions related to religious activities and beliefs held by respondents. (7) General demographic information, including age, sex, race, type of Hispanic descent, education, employment and citizenship ... Cf. : http://webapp.icpsr.umich.edu/cocoon/ICPSR-STUDY/04297.xml.