This study explores elderly volunteers’ identity during their experiences volunteering in the community in Shanghai. Purposive and snowball sampling strategies were used to recruit elderly volunteers to participate in semi-structured, in-depth interviews (N = 40). Participants developed new identities during volunteering. Through volunteering, they also continued to sustain their professional identities and Chinese Communist Party identities. Volunteering had both positive and negative implications for participants’ identities. Our findings suggest that volunteering strengthened participants’ role identity and social identity to better adapt to life after retirement. Volunteering also helped participants achieve identity continuity. This study offers nuanced sociocultural context to current elderly volunteering research and informs tailored policy and practice development in urban China.
AllportG. W. (1954). The nature of prejudice. Addison-Wesley.
2.
AtchleyR. C. (1971). Retirement and leisure participation: Continuity or crisis?The Gerontologist, 11, 13–17.
3.
AtchleyR. C. (1989). A continuity theory of normative aging. The Gerontologist, 29, 183–190.
4.
BarnesH.ParryJ. (2004). Renegotiating identity and relationships: Men and women’s adjustment to retirement. Ageing & Society, 24, 213–233.
5.
BrayD. (2006). Building “community”: New strategies of governance in urban China. Economy and Society, 35, 530–549.
6.
CalleroP. L.HowardJ. A.PiliavinJ. A. (1987). Helping behavior as role behavior: Disclosing social structure and history in the analysis of prosocial action. Social Psychology Quarterly, 50, 247–256.
7.
CnaanR. A.BoddieS. C.McGrewC. C.KangJ. (2006). The other Philadelphia story: How local congregations support quality of life in urban America. University of Pennsylvania Press.
8.
CnaanR. A.HandyF.WadsworthM. (1996). Defining who is a volunteer: Conceptual and empirical considerations. Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly, 25, 364–383.
9.
CoveyH. C. (1981). A reconceptualization of continuity theory: Some preliminary thoughts. The Gerontologist, 21(6), 628–633.
10.
DahlmanC. J.AubertJ. E. (2001). China and the knowledge economy: Seizing the 21st century. World Bank Publications.
11.
DaiL. (2013). Elderly volunteers from an active aging perspective [Unpublished doctoral dissertation]. Nanjing University.
12.
DammanM.HenkensK.KalmijnM. (2015). Missing work after retirement: The role of life histories in the retirement adjustment process. The Gerontologist, 55(5), 802–813.
13.
DingY. Z.JiangX. Q.TanJ. G. (2007). Volunteering service in China. Peking University Press. (In Chinese)
14.
DuP.XieL.LiY. (2015). How to expand elderly volunteering? An empirical study on Beijing Chaowai Sub-district. Population & Development, 21(1), 89–95. (In Chinese)
15.
DuanS.WangF. (2010). A qualitative study on Chinese older adults’ motivations to volunteer. Hebei University Xue Bao (Philosophy and Social Science), 35(2), 121–125. (In Chinese)
16.
DuryS.De DonderL.De WitteN.BuffelT.JacquetW.VertéD. (2015). To volunteer or not: The influence of individual characteristics, resources, and social factors on the likelihood of volunteering by older adults. Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly, 44(6), 1107–1128.
17.
EinolfC.ChambréS. M. (2011). Who volunteers? Constructing a hybrid theory. International Journal of Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Marketing, 16(4), 298–310.
18.
ElderG. H.ShanahanM. J.JenningsJ. A. (2015). Human development in time and place. In BornsteinM. H.LeventhalT. (Eds.), Handbook of child psychology and developmental science (Vol. 4, 6th ed., pp. 665–715). Psychology Press.
19.
FinkelsteinM. A.BrannickM. T. (2007). Applying theories of institutional helping to informal volunteering: Motives, role identity, and prosocial personality. Social Behavior and Personality: An International Journal, 35(1), 101–114.
20.
FinkelsteinM. A.PennerL. A.BrannickM. T. (2005). Motive, role identity, and prosocial personality as predictors of volunteer activity. Social Behavior and Personality: An International Journal, 33(4), 403–418.
21.
GoffmanE. (1959). The presentation of self in everyday life. Doubleday/Anchor.
22.
GonzalesE.Matz-CostaC.Morrow-HowellN. (2015). Increasing opportunities for the productive engagement of older adults: A response to population aging. The Gerontologist, 55(2), 252–261.
GreenfieldE. A.MarksN. F. (2004). Formal volunteering as a protective factor for older adults’ psychological well-being. The Journals of Gerontology, Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences, 59(5), S258–S264.
25.
GreenfieldE. A.ScharlachA. E.DavittJ. K. (2016). Organizational characteristics and volunteering in age-friendly supportive service initiatives. Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly, 45(5), 931–948.
26.
GrefeD. (2011). Combating ageism with narrative and intergroup contact: Possibilities of intergenerational connections. Pastoral Psychology, 60(1), 99–105.
27.
GrönlundH. (2011). Identity and volunteering intertwined: Reflections on the values of young adults. Voluntas: International Journal of Voluntary and Nonprofit Organizations, 22(4), 852–874.
28.
GuestG.MacQueenK. M.NameyE. E. (2011). Applied thematic analysis. SAGE.
29.
Haski-LeventhalD. (2009). Elderly volunteering and well-being: A cross-European comparison based on SHARE data. Voluntas: International Journal of Voluntary and Nonprofit Organizations, 20(4), 388–404.
30.
Haski-LeventhalD.CnaanR. A. (2009). Group processes and volunteering: Using groups to enhance volunteerism. Administration in Social Work, 33(1), 61–80.
31.
HenningG.LindwallM.JohanssonB. (2016). Continuity in well-being in the transition to retirement. The Journal of Gerontopsychology and Geriatric Psychiatry, 29(4), 225–237.
32.
HongS. I.Morrow-HowellN.TangF.HinterlongJ. (2009). Engaging older adults in volunteering: Conceptualizing and measuring institutional capacity. Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly, 38(2), 200–219.
33.
HooglandA. I. (2015). Continuity of change: The dynamic of beliefs, values, and the aging experience. Journal of Aging Studies, 32, 32–39.
34.
HustinxL.CnaanR. A.HandyF. (2010). Navigating theories of volunteering: A hybrid map for a complex phenomenon. Journal for the Theory of Social Behaviour, 40(4), 410–434.
35.
KimJ. E.MoenP. (2002). Retirement transitions, gender, and psychological well-being: A life-course, ecological model. The Journals of Gerontology, Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences, 57(3), P212–P222.
36.
KojolaE.MoenP. (2016). No more lock-step retirement: Boomers’ shifting meanings of work and retirement. Journal of Aging Studies, 36, 59–70.
37.
LeeL.PiliavinJ. A.CallV. R. A. (1999). Giving time, money, and blood: Similarities and differences. Social Psychology Quarterly, 62, 276–290.
38.
LiQ. (2010). Older adults’ volunteerism in urban communities: A survey in Jinan City. Social Science, 6(10), 72–79. (In Chinese)
39.
LiY.XuL.ChiI.GuoP. (2013). Participation in productive activities and health outcomes among older adults in urban China. The Gerontologist, 54, 784–796.
40.
LiuH.LouV. W. (2017). Patterns of productive activity engagement as a longitudinal predictor of depressive symptoms among older adults in urban China. Aging & Mental Health, 21(11), 1147–1154.
41.
LiuH.LouW. Q. (2016). Patterns of productive activity engagement among older adults in urban China. European Journal of Ageing, 13(4), 361–372.
42.
LuovaO. (2011). Community volunteers’ associations in contemporary Tianjin: Multipurpose partners of the party-state. Journal of Contemporary China, 20, 773–794.
43.
MartaE.ManziC.PozziM.VignolesV. L. (2014). Identity and the theory of planned behavior: Predicting maintenance of volunteering after three years. The Journal of Social Psychology, 154(3), 198–207.
44.
MinichielloV.BrowneJ.KendigH. (2000). Perceptions and consequences of ageism: Views of older people. Ageing & Society, 20(3), 253–278.
45.
Mjelde-MosseyL. A.ChinI.LubbenJ.LouV. W. (2009). Relationship between productive activities, family relations, and aging well for elders in China. Journal of Ethnic & Cultural Diversity in Social Work, 18(4), 276–292.
46.
Morrow-HowellN. (2010). Volunteering in later life: Research frontiers. The Journals of Gerontology, Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences, 65(4), 461–469.
47.
Morrow-HowellN.GonzalesE.Matz-CostaC.GreenfieldE. A. (2015). Increasing productive engagement in later life (Grand Challenges for Social Work Initiative, Working paper no. 8). American Academy of Social Work and Social Welfare.
48.
Morrow-HowellN.HongS. I.TangF. (2009). Who benefits from volunteering? Variations in perceived benefits. The Gerontologist, 49(1), 91–102.
49.
MusickM. A.WilsonJ. (2003). Volunteering and depression: The role of psychological and social resources in different age groups. Social Science & Medicine, 56, 259–269.
50.
MutchlerJ. E.BurrJ. A.CaroF. G. (2003). Leaving the paid workforce and volunteering in later life. Social Forces, 81, 1267–1293.
51.
NarushimaM. (2005). “Payback time”: Community volunteering among older adults as a transformative mechanism. Ageing & Society, 25(4), 567–584.
NimrodG.KleiberD. A. (2007). Reconsidering change and continuity in later life: Toward an innovation theory of successful aging. The International Journal of Aging and Human Development, 65(1), 1–22.
54.
O’ReillyP.CaroF. G. (1995). Productive aging: An overview of the literature. Journal of Aging & Social Policy, 6(3), 39–71.
55.
PayneB. P. (1977). The older volunteer: Social role continuity and development. The Gerontologist, 17(4), 355–361.
56.
RozarioP. A.Morrow-HowellN.HinterlongJ. E. (2004). Role enhancement or role strain: Assessing the impact of multiple productive roles on older caregiver well-being. Research on Aging, 26, 413–428.
57.
SerpeR. T. (1987). Stability and change in self: A structural symbolic interactionist explanation. Social Psychology Quarterly, 50(1), 44–55.
58.
SheaJ. (2017). Senior volunteering in service to community elders in Shanghai: Bringing together agendas for productive aging and community-based social support for the aged in China. Ageing International, 42, 205–237. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12126-016-9270-6
59.
ShentonA. K. (2004). Strategies for ensuring trustworthiness in qualitative research projects. Education for Information, 22, 63–75.
60.
SieberS. D. (1974). Toward a theory of role accumulation. American Sociological Review, 39, 567–578.
61.
StetsJ. E.BurkeP. J. (2000). Identity theory and social identity theory. Social Psychology Quarterly, 63, 224–237.
62.
StraussA.CorbinJ. (1998). Basics of qualitative research: Techniques and procedures for developing grounded theory. SAGE.
63.
TajfelH. (Ed.) (1978). Differentiation between social groups. Academic Press.
64.
TajfelH.TurnerJ. C. (1986). The social identity theory of intergroup behaviour. In WorchelS.AustinW. G. (Eds.), Psychology of intergroup relations (2nd ed., pp. 7–24). Nelson-Hall.
65.
TangF.Morrow-HowellN.HongS. (2009). Inclusion of diverse older populations in volunteering: The importance of institutional facilitation. Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly, 38(5), 810–827.
66.
ThoitsP. A. (2012). Role-identity salience, purpose and meaning in life, and well-being among volunteers. Social Psychology Quarterly, 75(4), 360–384.
67.
ThoitsP. A.HewittL. N. (2001). Volunteer work and well-being. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 42(2), 115–131.
68.
Van DyneL.FarmerS. M. (2004). It’s who I am: Role identity and organizational citizenship behavior of volunteers. In TurnipseedD. L. (Ed.), Handbook of organizational citizenship behavior: A review of “good soldier” activity in organizations (pp. 177–203). Nova Science.
69.
Van WilligenM. (2000). Differential benefits of volunteering across the life course. The Journals of Gerontology, Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences, 55(5), S308–S318.
70.
von BonsdorffM. E.ShultzK. S.LeskinenE.TanskyJ. (2009). The choice between retirement and bridge employment: A continuity theory and life course perspective. The International Journal of Aging and Human Development, 69(2), 79–100.
71.
WarburtonJ.PaynterJ.PetriwskyjA. (2007). Volunteering as a productive aging activity: Incentives and barriers to volunteering by Australian seniors. Journal of Applied Gerontology, 26(4), 333–354.
72.
XieL. (2015). Volunteering and its impact on self-identity: Results from Chaoyang District in Beijing. Asia Pacific Journal of Social Work and Development, 25(3), 170–181.
