[The participation of seniors in volunteer activities: a systematic review]

Volunteer work can be a very significant form of social participation for seniors. It can also provide seniors with important physical and psychological health benefits. This explains why occupational therapists and other health care professionals, as well as community workers who are concerned with healthy aging, appeal to seniors to volunteer in health promotion and community support However, the recruitment and ongoing involvement of seniors as volunteers is often challenging.

A systematic review of the literature was undertaken to enlighten practitioners working in this domain. The objective was to identify factors that influence seniors' participation in volunteer work.

Six bibliographic databases were searched using key words.

A total of 27 relevant papers were retrieved and allowed an identification of a series of factors that could influence seniors' participation in volunteer work, namely personal factors, environmental factors, and occupational factors.

This analysis leads to practical guidelines for facilitating the recruitment and maintenance of seniors' engagement in volunteer work.