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Current Population Survey (CPS) Volunteer and Civic Life Supplement
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The Volunteering and Civic Life Supplement was conducted as a supplement to the Current Population Survey (CPS). The CPS is a monthly labor force survey conducted in approximately 56,000 interviewed households across the country. The Volunteering and Civic Life Supplement questions were asked of persons age 16 years old or older.
Questions were asked about participation in volunteer activities, types of organizations volunteered for, and the types of activities for volunteer service. Questions were also asked about whether or not donations of money, assets, or property valued at 25 dollars or more were made in the past year to charitable or religious organizations. Additional questions were asked about interactions with family, friends, neighbors, and people from other backgrounds; political engagement; group membership and participation.
Previous to 2017, this information came from two CPS supplements: the CPS Volunteer Supplement and the CPS Civic Engagement Supplement. These two surveys were merged to become the CPS Volunteering and Civic Life Supplement.
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Approximately 56,000 households
- Survey (self- or interviewer-administered)
The Volunteering and Civic Life Supplement attempted to obtain self-responses from household members 16 years old and over. Proxy responses were allowed if attempts for a self-response were unsuccessful. The supplement contained questions about the household member's participation in civic and volunteering service. It asks a variety of topics that assess civic health. This includes interactions with family, friends, neighbors, and people from other backgrounds; political engagement; group membership and participation; frequency of volunteering activity; and donations to political or charitable organizations. Interviewers were provided with a two-hour home study for completing the basic CPS labor force exercises, supplement exercises, and a practice interview concerning the supplement.