People should help each other in their daily lives, as assisting others not only solves their difficulties but also benefits oneself. A study conducted in the United States focusing on middle-aged and elderly individuals found that regularly volunteering or providing informal assistance can slow down age-related cognitive decline, and the benefits of spending 2 to 4 hours a week helping others will become apparent.
This research, jointly conducted by the University of Texas at Austin and the University of Massachusetts Boston, revealed that spending time outdoors regularly to help others can significantly reduce cognitive decline in middle-aged and elderly individuals.
Based on nearly 20 years of telephone survey data from 31,303 adults aged 50 and above, researchers analyzed the correlation between cognitive test scores and helping behavior (whether volunteering or offering assistance to friends, relatives, and neighbors in need).
The results showed that regular involvement in volunteering activities can reduce the rate of cognitive aging by approximately 15% to 20%. When individuals spend 2 to 4 hours a week helping others, these cognitive benefits will continue to manifest.
Assistant Professor Sae Hwang Han from the Department of Human Development and Family Sciences at the University of Texas at Austin, who led the study, expressed that acts of kindness in daily life – whether organized or individual – can have a lasting impact on cognitive abilities.
Han stated, “What impressed me is that the benefits of helping others are not just short-term improvements in cognitive abilities but gradually accumulate with continued participation. Furthermore, whether through formal volunteering or informal assistance, these benefits are evident. Additionally, even moderate participation (2 to 4 hours per week) can continuously bring significant benefits.”
Informal assistance mentioned here includes helping neighbors, relatives, or friends in need with tasks such as doctor visits, childcare, lawn mowing, or tax filing.
In the United States, approximately one-third of older adults engage in organized formal volunteering services, while over half of elderly individuals are able to regularly help others through informal assistance.
Han mentioned, “Sometimes people may think that informal helping behavior, due to lacking social recognition, provides fewer health benefits. But surprisingly, the cognitive benefits it brings are comparable to formal volunteering services.”
This study controlled for other factors affecting volunteering services and helping behavior, such as wealth, physical and mental health, and education level. The research indicated that as individuals initiate and maintain helping behavior, the rate of age-related cognitive decline slows down. People who incorporate helping behavior into their daily lives and persist in it over the years may receive greater benefits.
In contrast, data from the study showed that individuals who do not assist others at all experience a decline in cognitive function. Han stated, “This means that under appropriate support and facilitation, encouraging older adults to engage in some form of helping activity for as long as possible is crucial.”
He further added, “Many elderly individuals with poor health conditions are still able to make valuable contributions to those around them and they may also be among those who benefit greatly from the opportunities to help others.”
The research findings mentioned above were published in the journal “Social Science & Medicine.”
It is worth noting that a study conducted by the University of Mannheim in Germany found that helping others can also benefit oneself psychologically, socially, and emotionally, leading to a significant increase in overall happiness. (For more details, click on the research: “Doing Good Makes You Happy – Treating Others Benefits Oneself.”)