Cultural factors in mid- and later life volunteerism in the United States: A scoping review protocol

Abstract

Introduction Volunteerism in midlife and later life is linked to improved well-being for individuals and stronger communities, but participation rates differ widely across groups. Most existing research has focused on socioeconomic factors to explain volunteering, while cultural factors have received less attention and are often narrowly defined, usually in terms of religiosity. As a result, it remains unclear how culture is conceptualized and examined in relation to volunteering in later life. To address this gap, it is important to systematically review how cultural factors have been defined and studied in relation to volunteerism among older adults. Methods and analysis This protocol describes a scoping review that will follow the JBI Scoping Review Framework and the PRISMA-ScR guidelines. The review aims to identify and map how cultural factors are conceptualized and operationalized in studies of formal and informal volunteerism among adults aged 50 and older in the United States. Searches will include several academic databases. Two reviewers will independently screen studies and extract data. Findings will be synthesized using descriptive and thematic analysis. Cultural factors identified across studies will be grouped into themes based on conceptual similarity to summarize how culture has been conceptualized and operationalized in U.S.-based volunteerism research and study. As this is a protocol, no results are reported. Registration: This protocol has been registered on the Open Science Framework (OSF) ( https://doi.org/10.17605/OSF.IO/4SZVU ).