Volunteering in America

Factors that Influence Volunteer Rates

Oklahoma City

Greater Attachment to the Community Encourages Volunteering

Indicators such as homeownership and the number of multiunit dwellings, help determine whether residents have a long-term commitment and attachment to their communities. Data show that as the rate of homeownership increases the volunteer rate also tends to increase. Nationally, 66.6% of individuals own their home. In Oklahoma City, 65.8% own their home. Conversely, communities with a large percentage of multi-unit housing, such as apartment buildings and condominiums, have lower volunteer rates. Nationally, 32.4% of individuals live in multi-unit housing, while Oklahoma City has a rate of 25.8%.

Long Commutes Can Curtail Opportunities to Volunteer

Long commutes can be expected to reduce the time and opportunity individuals have to connect to organizations in their communities, thus reducing average volunteer rates. Nationally, commuters travel on average just over 25 minutes to work. In Oklahoma City, commuters travel on average 22 minutes to work.

Volunteering Rises with Education

For states and large metropolitan areas, as the education level increases, the likelihood of volunteering also rises. At a national level, 85.0% have a high school diploma or GED equivalent and 27.7% have a college degree. In Oklahoma City, 87.1% have a high school diploma or GED equivalent and 26.4% have a college degree.

Volunteering is Less Common in High Poverty Areas

Poverty is another socioeconomic characteristic that tends to be strongly associated with lower volunteer rates. However, it is difficult to determine whether high poverty rates reduce the overall propensity to volunteer, whether high volunteering in a community leads to a reduction in poverty, or if both effects occur. At a National level, the poverty rate is 13.2 percent. Oklahoma City has a poverty rate of 14.4%.

Higher State Unemployment Related to Lower Volunteering

As shown in the Volunteering in America 2010 Issue Brief, states with high rates of unemployment usually have low volunteer rates. While theorists have ideas as to the basis of this relationship, more research is needed to determine a cause. In 2009, the national unemployment rate was 8.5%. In Oklahoma City, the unemployment rate was 5.4%.

Volunteer Rates Lower in Cities with High Foreclosures

In general, higher foreclosure rates are expected to have an impact on volunteering rates; that is, it would not be unexpected if higher foreclosure rates in a city corresponded with lower volunteer rates. In 2009, we see the evidence. Cities with high foreclosure rates tend to have a corresponding lower volunteering rate. For more information, see the Volunteering in America 2010 Issue Brief. In Oklahoma City, the foreclosure rate changed by - 0.3 percentage points between 2008 and 2009 (Foreclosure data used for this analysis was provided by RealtyTrac).

The Capacity of a Community's Associations Impacts Volunteer Rates

Communities with higher nonprofits per capita are likely to have higher volunteer rates. As the number of nonprofits per 1,000 city residents increases, the volunteering rate also increases. At a national level, there are an average of 4.45 nonprofit organizations per 1,000 residents. Oklahoma City has, on average, 4.19 nonprofits per 1,000 city residents.