Independent Sector provides a useful list of recent studies on giving and volunteering.

This 2012 U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics study shows volunteer statistics by gender, race and age. The volunteer rate was 26.5 percent in 2012. About 64.5 million people volunteered through or for an organization at least once between September 2011 and September 2012.

The 2012 lists by The Chronicle of Philanthropy look at 2011 giving as a share of 2010 profits to determine which of America’s big companies are the most philanthropic.

According to a 2010 study by AARP, the number of baby boomers and older Americans volunteering outside of a formal organization increased from 34 percent in 2003 to 57 percent in 2009. Seven in 10 boomers reported they are engaged in volunteering either on their own or through an organization, a 20 percent increase over […]

This report by the Corporation for National and Community Service in partnership with the National Conference on Citizenship, shows that Americans significantly increased their commitment to volunteering and civic engagement in 2011, with the national volunteer rate reaching a five-year high.

This 2004 survey of almost 1,400 youth ages 18 to 25 that included Christian, Muslim, Jewish youth and a mix of races and ethnicities – explored attitudes about faith, politics and volunteer service. It found a “strong and intimate” connection between religious faith and volunteerism. 56 percent of those surveyed volunteered in their community in […]

This survey, published in May 2004 by the Leon and Sylvia Panetta Institute for Public Policy, interviewed 800 college students about their attitudes toward public and volunteer service, politics and more. 53 percent of college students said they had volunteered in their communities, a drop from 2001, when 68 percent said they did. Volunteering in […]

This 2002 survey from the Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University, found that of the 65.6 percent who said they gave money to help victims of the attack, the average gift was about $134 and half gave small donations of $50 or less. Also, 8.3 percent said they donated time – an average of 17 […]

This report from the U.S. Census Bureau published in September 2012 shows that the nation’s official poverty rate in 2011 was 15.0 percent, with 46.2 million people in poverty.