Family Life Course Status and Volunteer Behavior: Implications for the Single Parent

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Abstract
This paper reports the findings of a study that examines the relationship between family life course status (based on marital status, parenthood, and age of youngest child) and volunteer behavior. Also, the impact of being a single parent on volunteering is examined. Married parents are more likely to volunteer generally and, specifically, in certain youth-oriented activities. However, the status of married-with-children is negatively associated with the aggregate number of hours volunteered, while there is a positive association between single parents with school-age children and hours devoted to certain activities. Single parents with preschool children have neither the social supports of married parents to share roles, nor the relative freedom enjoyed by single persons with no children or with school-age children, and are less likely to volunteer or devote time to organized volunteer activities.