Informal Care is the name of an additional digital questionnaire that was send out to adult and elderly participants (60-80 years old) in collaboration with the Department of Epidemiology of the University of Groningen.

Determinants and health consequences of participation in voluntary work were assessed in order to investigate the determinants of participation in voluntary work. Both the resources and constraints as well as the underlying motives to volunteer were considered. In this study, the focus was on the relationship between volunteer motivations and participation in voluntary work and on the interplay between the motivations to volunteer and the individuals’ resources and constraints.

The digital questionnaires were send out between May and December 2017

15,664 participants were invited for QACT.
The selection criteria were the following:

• Age >= 60 and <80
• Participant filled in either 2A Questionnaire 1 or 2A Questionnaire 2

The response rate was 49% (n=7633).

The digital questionnaire contained various variables that originated from questionnaires previously used in Lifelines:

• Living situation (7 items)
• Family composition (2 items)
• Stress (LTE) (13 items)
• Social functioning (general) (6 items on loneliness)
• Social functioning (SPF-IL) (17 items)
• Informal care (6 items on EQ-D5)
• Quality of Life (PROMIS) (29 items)
• Quality of Life (RAND) (2 items)
• Quality of Life (HHIAS) (3 items)
• Intermed (1 item)
• Eye conditions (4 items)
• Values, beliefs, priorities (4 items)
• Employment status (9 items)
• Food intake (2 items)
• Smoking & tobacco use (1 item)
• Physical activity (SQUASH) (2 items)
• Physical activity (sports) (2 items)

In addition, the following variables were specifically assessed in QACT:

Questions about daily activities (see for other questions on hobbies and activities in Lifelines here)

Questions about alcohol use (see for other questions on alcohol use in Lifelines here)

Questions about role in society

Questions about care for grandchildren

Questions about Volunteer Work
Note that the QACT digital questionnaire included the Volunteer Functions Inventory. More information regarding the use of this validated instrument can be found here.