The civic core is the part of the population that is responsible for a disproportionately large part of civic participation. This paper shows how the level of activity and the composition of the civic core have changed in the Netherlands between 1997 and 2009 using data from the Giving in the Netherlands Survey. The results show that - despite ongoing secularization - the civic core in the Netherlands is increasingly religious. At the same time, the prevalence of higher educated individuals in the civic core has diminished. Engagement in charitable giving is increasingly related to engagement in volunteering. In sum, the increasing concentration of activity in the civic core is especially visible among religious persons and volunteers.

1. Religion and the Civic Core
in the Netherlands
René Bekkers
Center for Philanthropic Studies
VU University Amsterdam
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2. • Religious people do more of the total
giving and volunteering in the United
States, Canada, the Netherlands and
Flanders.
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3. Religion in the Netherlands
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4. Giving in the Netherlands
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5. • Civic participation tends to be
concentrated among a small group that
does most of the giving and volunteering.
• Reed & Selbee (2001, NVSQ) call this
group the ‘civic core’.
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6. • You can think of giving and volunteering
as a natural phenomenon with a certain
level of concentration.
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7. Like firebugs.
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8. • Firebugs tend to cling together.
• In my own front garden I find them
especially on dry and sunny places.
• Churches are like the sunny rocks in my
garden – a fertile environment for donors
and volunteers.
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9. This is not what the bugs do.
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10. They concentrate -
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11. Into a core.
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12. So, why?
• Why is religious affiliation and activity
associated with giving and volunteering?
• What is it in religion that makes people
care about society as a whole?
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13. Popular dichotomies
• Conviction and community (Wuthnow,
1991)
• Intrinsic religious motivation (Cnaan et
al., 1993) vs. associational ties (Jackson et
al, 1995)
• Norms and networks (Ruiter & De Graaf,
2006)
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14. Volunteering and Giving
• Volunteering and charitable giving are two
types of contributions to society
• They are both indicators of social capital,
governed by similar principles
• With Pamala Wiepking I recently
summarized the literature on charitable
giving in a review article for Voluntary
Sector Review (November 2011 issue).
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16. • In this formulation, religion is viewed as
an external force that influences people.
• From religious communities, people ‘get’
their networks and convictions.
• Religious beliefs and prosocial values may
vary from person to person.
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17. So, why?
• Why is religious affiliation and activity
associated with giving and volunteering?
• What is it in religion that makes people
care about society as a whole?
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18. So, why?
• Why is religious affiliation and activity
associated with giving and volunteering?
• What is it in people that makes them care
about religion and society as a whole?
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19. A stone in the pond…
• Going back to the firebugs, I wonder why
bugs like sunny rocks.
• Why do donors and volunteers love going
to church?
• Church attendance involves exposure to
requests for contributions.
• For those who dislike contributing and/or
being asked to do so, the church is not a
fun place to be.
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20. Endogeneity
• Religion is increasingly a matter of choice.
• People with personalities and value
systems that conflict with the church in
which they were ‘born’ will leave.
• Social influence in religious communities
is also to some extent the influence group
members allow.
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21. -
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22. UCSIA Workshop Volunteering, Religion, and Social
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23. Back on track: so what?
• This talk is mainly about how the
concentration of giving and volunteering
among religious groups in the Netherlands
has changed over time.
• This is important because religion
disappears from Dutch society.
• Will giving and volunteering decline along
with secularization?
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24. Not…
• …if those who are ‘left behind’ in churches
become more active citizens.
 this would lead to a higher level of
concentration of giving and volunteering
among the religious.
• …if another factor gains importance, such
as education – but I am saving that for
another occasion.
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25. The data
• All the ‘Giving in the Netherlands’ survey
data that we have gathered biennially
since 1997. Total n=9,696.
• The data are treated as separate cross-
sections and then pooled into one file.
• Amounts are adjusted for inflation.
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26. Total giving by religion
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27. Religious giving
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28. Secular giving by religion
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29. Top quintile, 2009
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30. Doing their share?
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31. Growing inequality in secular
giving over time
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32. Volunteer hours top quintile
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33. Increasing concentration
Proportion of volunteers by total giving quintile
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34. Amounts donated by non-
volunteers
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35. Amounts donated by volunteers
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36. Household giving: no-yes
Catholic 1.403*** 1.438***
Protestant 1.757*** 1.751***
Survey wave 1.116***
Catholic * wave 1.038***
Protestant * wave 0.985
Secondary education 1.166*** 1.191***
Tertiary education 1.618*** 1.673***
Secondary * wave 0.915***
Tertiary * wave 0.916***
Church attendance (4 categories) 1.180*** 1.182***
Attendance * wave 0.997
n 9,696 9,696
Odds ratios in logistic egression of household giving, also including age (model 1) and age * wave (model 2),
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37. Amount donated in €
Catholic -109*** -111***
Protestant 216*** 215***
Survey wave 14***
Catholic * wave 7***
Protestant * wave 3
Secondary education 51*** 71***
Tertiary education 160*** 185***
Secondary * wave -17***
Tertiary * wave -21***
Church attendance (4 categories) 125*** 124***
Attendance * wave 2***
n 7,857 7,857
Odds ratios in logistic egression of household giving, also including age (model 1) and age * wave (model 2),
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38. Volunteering: no-yes
Catholic 1.142** 1.146**
Protestant 1.723*** 1.709***
Survey wave 1.045***
Catholic * wave 0.999
Protestant * wave 1.025
Secondary education 1.190*** 1.245***
Tertiary education 1.613*** 1.695***
Secondary * wave 0.958***
Tertiary * wave 0.963***
Church attendance (4 categories) 1.333*** 1.326***
Attendance * wave 1.017***
n 9,030 9,030
Odds ratios in logistic egression of household giving, also including age (model 1) and age * wave (model 2),
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39. Amount donated in € (logs, donors only)
Catholic -.063 -.097 -.098
Protestant .841*** .744*** .688***
Survey wave .111*** .106*** .085***
Secondary education .707*** .585*** .554***
Tertiary education 1.393*** 1.278*** 1.237***
Volunteering .389*** .235*** .159
Volunteering * wave .067*** .059*** .046***
Social responsibility .384*** .357***
Altruistic values .628*** .582***
Asked to volunteer .108* .058
Number of solicitations .214*** .161***
Requests * wave .015*
n 5,983 5,983 5,983
Odds ratios in OLS regressions of log of total amount donated, also including age , age * wave, education * wave, religion * wave
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40. Secular amount donated in € (logs, donors only)
Catholic -.063 -.259*** -.296***
Protestant .283*** .098 -.064
Survey wave -.026*** .114*** .085***
Secondary education -.025 .585*** .522***
Tertiary education .554*** 1.278*** 1.304***
Volunteering .375*** .132
Volunteering * wave .054** .031
Social responsibility .357***
Altruistic values .643***
Asked to volunteer .057
Number of solicitations .165***
Requests * wave .018**
n 5,983 5,983 5,983
Odds ratios in OLS regressions of log of total amount donated, also including age , age * wave, education * wave, religion * wave
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41. Additional results
• Concentration of giving among the elderly
is due to their stronger religiosity.
• No significant changes in relationships
with hours volunteered among volunteers.
• No changes in relationships of prosocial
values with giving.
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42. Additional results
• Similar denominational differences in
helping behavior as in volunteering.
• Helping is positively related to
volunteering, both secular and religious.
• The relationship between secular
volunteering and church attendance has
become stronger over time.
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43. Conclusions
• The civic core is increasingly religious.
• The civic core is becoming less highly
educated.
• The civic core becomes increasingly
concentrated: volunteering and giving
increasingly go together.
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44. Concentrating from
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45. To this core.
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46. A grim future?
• How can we create new forms of cohesion
in society that bring people together?
• Creating opportunities to contribute time
and money in groups with positive norms:
sunny rocks
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47. Something else
-
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48. Contact
• ‘Giving in the Netherlands’, Center for
Philanthropic Studies, Faculty of Social
Sciences, VU University Amsterdam:
www.geveninnederland.nl
• René Bekkers, r.bekkers@vu.nl
• Blog: renebekkers.wordpress.com
• Twitter: @renebekkers
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