Timebanking Promotes Equitable Volunteering in Older Adults Without Crowding-Out Effects: Evidence from a Quasi-Experimental Study in Hong Kong.

Background and objectives: Timebanking has the potential as a social equalizer to promote volunteering for healthy aging. As a community-based system, it allows participants to exchange services or goods using time as currency-where one hour of service equals one time credit. However, there is limited understanding of whether timebanking might crowd out other volunteering participation elsewhere, and whether it perpetuates or alleviates social inequality of access to volunteering.

Research design and methods: This article presents findings from a quasi-experimental study on a timebanking program for adults aged 50 and above in Hong Kong, conducted between January 2021 and August 2022. The study involved 116 participants in the timebanking group and 114 in a comparison group. Both groups engaged in volunteer activities at local community centers, but only the timebanking group could exchange earned time credits for rewards.

Results: After controlling for covariates, we found timebanking significantly increased within-program volunteering hours (T1: β = 0.56, p < 0.001; T2: β = 0.36, p = 0.003) without reducing other volunteering hours elsewhere. Effects were stronger among subgroups: adults aged 65 + (T1: β = 0.57, p = 0.021; T2: β = 0.63, p = 0.010), those with lower education (T1: β = 1.25, p = 0.001; T2: β = 1.24, p = 0.001), and individuals with multimorbidity (T1: β = 0.79, p = 0.013).

Discussion and implications: Policymakers should integrate timebanking into community-based strategies to promote equity in late-life volunteering for healthy aging.