SCOTS living in the countryside are more likely to volunteer to help others than people living in urban areas, a new report has found.

A study by Dr Alasdair Rutherford, a lecturer in Quantitative Methods at the University of Stirling, found levels of volunteering were 2.5 times higher in the countryside than in cities, despite the potentially greater costs of travel involved.

Rural volunteers were more likely to be involved in service provision activities such as giving assistance to others, arranging transport and organising direct services.

They were also more likely to be involved in co-ordination activities such as committee and office work, and organising events and activities. More rural volunteers also said they helped several organisations.

The report has been prepared for the Economic and Social Research Council's (ESRC) annual Festival of Social Science, which runs from November 2-9.

Dr Rutherford said the reasons for the difference in levels of volunteering may be down to higher costs associated with running public services in the countryside, which provides an incentive for communities to cooperate through voluntary organisations in order to provide essential services. He added: "Rural communities that already have high levels of volunteering may be better equipped to absorb additional voluntary roles, as the social connections and support structures are already in place.

"However, these communities may already be at full capacity, with available volunteers unable to take on any more responsibility for public service provision."

"Urban communities may have untapped potential but weaker networks, while more rural communities have better connections but risk overloading individuals. Regardless, different approaches will need to be taken by policy makers that take account of the local context if volunteering is to be supported."

Dr Rutherford will expand upon the research at an event taking place today in Edinburgh.