Gen Z, Millennials Volunteer in Record Numbers, Study Finds
By Movieguide® Contributor
A new study from Barna has found that Gen Z-ers and Millennials are very likely to donate their time and resources to charities.
“It’s important to keep in mind the many natural reasons that Gen Z young adults are in a stage of life where it may be (or seem to be) difficult to donate,” Barna stressed.
However, the study’s results found that one in three Gen Z-ers (30%) and Millennials (33%) report that they have set up an ongoing monetary pledge to nonprofit organizations.
These age groups are also more likely to volunteer at an organization.
“Gen Z and Millennials are the generations most likely to report having volunteered their time to an organization in the past three months,” the study continued. “In fact, more than half of adults in Gen Z (54%) say they have expressed generosity in this way, far exceeding all their elders.”
AARP reported a similar trend, especially when it comes to young people volunteering.
“According to the annual national survey of college freshmen by the Higher Education Research Institute, over 80 percent of college freshmen have done volunteer work in the past year,” they said. “In their twenties, emerging adults are applying in record numbers to serve in organizations such as the Peace Corps, Americorps and Teach for America.”
The Guardian also conducted a survey about how young people donate.
“Over half of respondents aged between 18 and 24 said they would usually check out a charity before donating, compared with 29% of over-75s,” they reported, adding that this is important, as many seemingly-legitimate organizations don’t get the money to the people who really need it.
The Guardian also found that “44% of 18- to 24-year-olds said they would give up their smartphones for the month of December to raise £500 for a charity of their choice. This is compared with under a third of the rest of the population.”
Movieguide® previously reported on Gen Z’s emphasis on actions over words, especially when it comes to sharing their faith:
A recent Barna study investigated Gen Z’s approach to evangelism and faith in a digital world, uncovering surprising differences between today’s teens and other generations.
Barna’s study with Alpha USA and Alpha Canada found that more than “half of teens lean on actions rather than words when sharing their faith.”
“Half believe ‘letting your actions speak rather than using words to explain your faith’ and ‘inviting someone to attend a church service with you’ (50% each) are acts of evangelism,” the study found.
In fact, over four in five Christian teens (83%) believe that “letting your actions speak rather than using words to explain your faith to someone” is one of the best ways to elicit a positive response from non-believers.
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