With the holiday season coming we thought we'd talk to teens about things they do for others. It turns out that teens aren't focused only on the latest low-rider jeans or that cute boy or girl in class. This month's issue of Reaction reports on what teens are doing and what they're thinking about when it comes to their volunteer and charitable activities. There's a lot more going on in their hearts than you might think.

We first asked teens what different types of charitable activities they participate in. The most popular were donations of food or old clothes. They also like to participate in charity walks or runs and to donate spare change. Very few of the teens did nothing at all. What was noticeable was that the younger teens spent very little personal time helping out, preferring to drop off cans or clothes they've outgrown. As the teens got older we noticed that they spend more time helping out at places that interested them, like animal shelters, hospitals or with younger kids. One of the factors contributing to this is that as they get older it gets easier to get around on their own and participate in activities without depending on others for rides.

What gave these teens the idea to volunteer? While parents, school and church do encourage kids to volunteer they feel that it was their own decision to participate. They are very proud of their activities and do not want to share any of the credit for it! Pride and enjoyment is a great motivator for them. However, there are jurisdictions that require volunteer hours before a student may graduate high school and all universities look favourably on volunteer activities on a resume. Unfortunately, there are students who are volunteering primarily because they have to.

As we reported last month, teens are very busy these days and don't have a lot of time for additional activities. This may account for the popularity of dropping off donations rather than spending personal time volunteering. But other factors include not being well enough informed about the opportunities and not being aware of personal incentives to volunteer. Today's more successful charities agree that volunteer opportunities need to provide the volunteer with some benefit and Reactorz members are telling us that those benefits aren't always clear to them. But if interesting speakers came to their school, told them more about the charity and what benefits they would see from participation (e.g. work experience, new friends, self-confidence), they would probably get involved. Peer motivation continues to be a big factor as many thought they would participate more if their friends did too.

Insight: Organizations looking to recruit youth volunteer participation have a ready and willing market if they do a little work to catch teen's interests and clearly present the many benefits of volunteer and charitable activity. While the benefits include knowing you helped out those in need, a practical approach would understand the school and career related benefits and speak to a teen's personal interests. Charities need to speak directly to the kids - this is one area where speaking through parents, schools and other community leaders won't be as affective as reaching out directly to the teens.

For more information:

• Charity Village® for information on opportunities to donate, volunteer, jobs and information on various charities.
• Ontario's Community Service requirements to graduate from high school.
• Charity.ca for online charitable giving.

To find out more about Reactorz contact us online at www.reactorzresearch.com. Or call 416-516-0705.

Reactorz is a youth-powered research engine. Our online community of kids ages 7 to 22 provide their opinion and insight into current events, issues, creative & product design, entertainment and communications strategies. Reactorz parent company Big Orbit gathers this information and empowers clients by connecting them with this target group through strategic consulting and creative development. For over a decade, Big Orbit has worked with corporate, government and non-profit organizations such as: Kraft Canada, Junior Achievement of Canada, Concerned Children's Advertisers and Key Porter Books. For a complete list of clients and case studies please visit www.bigorbit.com or www.reactorzresearch.com.