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Technical Note

   The data in this release were collected through a supplement
to the September 2007 Current Population Survey (CPS).  The CPS--
a monthly survey of about 60,000 households conducted by the U.S.
Census Bureau for the Bureau of Labor Statistics--focuses on ob-
taining information on employment and unemployment among the 
nation's civilian noninstitutional population age 16 and over.
The purpose of this supplement to the CPS was to obtain informa-
tion on the incidence of volunteering and the characteristics of
volunteers in the United States.

Reliability of the estimates

   Statistics based on the CPS are subject to both sampling and
nonsampling error.  When a sample, rather than the entire popu-
lation, is surveyed, there is a chance that the sample estimates
may differ from the "true" population values they represent.  The
exact difference, or sampling error, varies depending on the par-
ticular sample selected, and this variability is measured by the
standard error of the estimate.  There is about a 90-percent chance,
or level of confidence, that an estimate based on a sample will dif-
fer by no more than 1.6 standard errors from the "true" population
value because of  sampling error.  BLS analyses are generally con-
ducted at the 90-percent level of confidence.

   The CPS data also are affected by nonsampling error.  Nonsam-
pling error can occur for many reasons, including the failure to
sample a segment of the population, inability to obtain informa-
tion for all respondents in the sample, inability or unwillingness
of respondents to provide correct information, and errors made in
the collection or processing of the data.

   For a full discussion of the reliability of data from the CPS
and for information on estimating standard errors, see the House-
hold Data Section of "Explanatory Notes and Estimates of Error"
at http://www.bls.gov/cps/eetech_methods.pdf.

   The Census Bureau introduces adjustments to the population
controls for the CPS as part of its annual update of population
estimates.  The 2003 adjustment resulted in an increase to the
estimates for all population categories. This increase was partly
offset by downward adjustments in 2004, 2005, and 2006. The 2007
adjustment was in the upward direction.  Consequently, estimated
levels of volunteers for September 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, and
2007 are not strictly comparable with one another, or with esti-
mated levels for September 2002.  These adjustments to the levels,
however, should have had only negligible effects on the volunteer
rates.  In addition to the population control adjustments, new
questions on race and ethnicity were introduced into the CPS in
January 2003.  For a discussion of the changes introduced into
the CPS in January 2003, see "Revisions to the Current Population
Survey Effective in January 2003," in the February 2003 issue of
Employment and Earnings, available at http://www.bls.gov/cps/
rvcps03.pdf on the BLS Web site.  For a discussion of the changes
introduced in January 2004, see "Adjustments to Household Survey
Population Estimates in January 2004," in the February 2004 issue
of Employment and Earnings, available on the BLS Web site at http:
//www.bls.gov/cps/cps04adj.pdf.  For a discussion of the changes
introduced in January 2005, see "Adjustments to Household Survey
Population Estimates in January 2005," in the February 2005 issue
of Employment and Earnings, available on the BLS Web site at http:
//www.bls.gov/cps/cps05adj.pdf.  For a discussion of the changes
introduced in January 2006, see "Adjustments to Household Survey
Population Estimates in January 2006," in the February 2006 issue
of Employment and Earnings, available on the BLS Web site at http:
//www.bls.gov/cps/cps06adj.pdf.  For a discussion of the changes
introduced in January 2007, see "Adjustments to Household Survey
Population Estimates in January 2007," in the February 2007 issue
of Employment and Earnings, available on the BLS Web site at http:
//www.bls.gov/cps/cps07adj.pdf.

   Information in this release will be made available to sensory-
impaired individuals upon request.  Voice phone:  (202) 691-5200;
TDD message referral phone number:  1-800-877-8339.


                                   - 5 -

Volunteer questions and concepts

   In the September 2007 supplement, questions on volunteer activ-
ities were asked of all households.  Efforts were made to have
household members answer the volunteer questions for themselves.
(Generally, one member of the household answers all the questions
in the CPS on behalf of the entire household.)  Self-response was
considered important for the volunteer supplement because research
indicated that self-respondents could more easily answer questions
on the characteristics of the volunteer activity.  About 72 percent
of the responses were self-reports.

   The survey was introduced as follows:  "This month, we are inter-
ested in volunteer activities, that is, activities for which people
are not paid, except perhaps expenses.  We only want you to include
volunteer activities that you did through or for an organization,
even if you only did them once in a while."

   Following this introduction, respondents were asked the first
supplement question:  "Since September 1st of last year, have you
done any volunteer activities through or for an organization?"

   If respondents did not answer "yes" to the first question, they
were asked the following question:  "Sometimes people don't think
of activities they do infrequently or activities they do for chil-
dren's schools or youth organizations as volunteer activities.  Since
September 1st of last year, have you done any of these types of vol-
unteer activities?"

   Respondents were considered volunteers if they answered "yes" to
either of these questions.  This is the same method of identifying
volunteers as was used in each of the five prior supplements.

   Respondents classified as volunteers were asked further questions
about the number and type of organizations for which they volunteered,
total hours spent volunteering, how they became involved with the main
organization for which they volunteered, the type of activities they
performed for the main organization, and what their main activity was.

   The reference period for the questions on volunteering was about
1 year, from September 1, 2006, through the survey week in September
2007.  The reference period for other characteristics, such as labor
force status, educational attainment, and marital status, refer to the
survey reference week in September 2007.  It is possible that these
characteristics were different at the time volunteer activities were
performed.

   Several new questions were added to the 2007 survey.  A question was
added to determine if volunteers had done any of their volunteering at
a distance of 120 miles or more from home but still within the United
States and its territories.  Those who had were then asked what share of
their volunteering it constituted and in what state or states it took
place.

   The question in the 2006 supplement that asked about time spent
volunteering abroad was changed to ask about the share of volunteering
that was done abroad in 2007.  The answer categories for the questions
on the share of volunteering done abroad or 120 miles or more from home
were made consistent by this change.

Definitions

   Volunteers are persons who performed unpaid volunteer activities at any
point from September 1, 2006, through the survey period in September 2007.
The count of volunteers only includes persons who volunteered through or 
for an organization; the figures do not include persons who volunteered in
a more informal manner.  For example, a woman who taught acting to children
through a local theater would be considered a volunteer.  However, a woman
who, on her own, organized softball games for the children in her neighbor-
hood would not be counted as a volunteer for the purpose of this survey.


                                   - 6 -

   Organizations are associations, societies, or groups of people who share a
common interest.  Examples include churches, youth groups, and civic organiz-
ations.  For the purpose of this study, organizations are grouped into eight
major categories, including religious, youth, and social or community service
organizations.  (See table 4.)

   In the 2005 survey, one organization category, immigrant/refugee assistance,
was added to the questionnaire as a possible response.  Responses that were
collected in this category may have been distributed over at least six of the
major organization categories in previous years.  For this reason, the addition
of the new response category created a break in the comparability of organiza-
tions between 2005 and prior years.  Because few people reported volunteering
for immigrant/refugee assistance organizations and because the group was not a
definite subset of any of the major organization categories, those persons who
did report that they volunteered for immigrant/refugee assistance organizations
were placed in the "other" group.

   The main organization is the organization for which the volunteer worked the
most hours during the year.  If a respondent volunteered for only one organiza-
tion, it was considered the main organization, even if exact hours were not 
obtained.

   In order to identify the type of main organization, respondents had to pro-
vide information about the organization and, for those who volunteered for more
than one organization, annual hours worked for each.  Some respondents did not
provide the information necessary to determine the main organization.  For these
respondents, the follow-up questions on activities and how they became involved
with the main organization asked them to report on the organization for which
they think they spent the most time volunteering.

   Activities are the specific tasks the volunteer did for an organization.
Examples include tutoring, fundraising, and serving food.  The activity cate-
gories were modified in 2005; thus creating a break in the comparability of
activities between 2005 and prior years.

   In 2006, a question was added that asks respondents on which of the activi-
ties they mentioned they spent the most time.  Previously, respondents reported
all of the activities they did for their main organization.  The new question 
identified which of them was the main activity for the main organization.