Determinants of charitable donation intentions: a structural equation model

• Currently charities have to depend more on individual donors and less on the government for funding. Hence, understanding the individual donor and what motivates them to contribute to charities is something, which has been of increasing interest to nonprofit marketers. In this article, a path model for the charitable donation process of a religious individual is developed and tested. The variables that are used in the model are religiosity, attitude towards helping others (AHO), attitude towards charitable organizations (ACO), attitude towards the advertisement (Attad) and behavioral intentions (BI). The results suggest that AHO by itself does not cause BI. Altruistic people need to be targeted with an appropriate advertisement message. Since religiosity is an important causal variable for AHO, segmenting and targeting individuals who are religious would be pertinent. Attempts to build favorable ACO would also be worthwhile.
• Religiosity
• Charitable donation intentions
• Charity advertisements.
• Path model for predicting intentions to donate.

Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Examining charitable donation process in South India: role of gender

With increasing financial clout, females are potentially poised as a greater source of charitable giving in the West. However, debate exists in the marketing literature about gender‐based differences in charitable donations. The purpose of this study is to research whether gender‐based segmentation is effective for charities in cultures in which high gender inequality exists. Hence, India, an emerging economy with high gender inequality, was chosen as the study setting. Following an extensive literature review, we identified gender, trust, attitude towards the ad, and feelings from the ad as key predictors of charitable donation intentions. A study model was developed and tested using regression analysis. It was found that the predictor variables have significant impact on intentions to donate. Hence, this study posits that gender could potentially be an effective segmentation variable for charities that are targeting potential donors in South India. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Money donations intentions among Muslim donors: an extended theory of planned behavior model

• The investigation into determinants of money donation intentions while employing an extended theory of planned behavior model is limited to developed country contexts. However, given the challenges facing charitable organizations and scant theoretical evidence from developing world, such an examination can contribute pragmatically. The current study establishes the impact of subjective norms, perceived behavioral control, past behavior, and attitude on respondents' money donation intentions to charities in Pakistan. The respondents (N = 223), a non‐student population living in the city of Gujranwala, completed a survey. The collected data are analyzed by means of a multivariate analysis, which was comprised of regression and correlation. The results reveal a strong support to the extended theory of planned behavior model in establishing the relationship between identified independent and dependent variables in a developing country context of Pakistan. The study contributes to the establishment of a few strategies, which are useful for managers working in charitable organizations to attract and retain donors to support several causes.

Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Perceived value of charitable involvement: The millennial donor perspective

The importance of nonprofit relationship marketing continues to increase as organizations compete to attract and retain a younger loyal donor base. The purpose of this study is to examine the impact of six determinants of charitable giving on millennial donor's perceived value received from their involvement with the charitable organization. A conceptual model and accompanying research hypotheses are tested on a sample of millennials from the U.S_(n = 227). Structural equation modeling is used to test the relationships in the model. Results suggest that five factors have a positive effect on donor's perceived value. Social recognition is found to be the most important factor, followed by attitude towards and trust in the charitable organization and attitude towards helping others. To a lesser degree, tax benefits and mitigation of guilt are also found to have an impact on donor's perceived value from charitable involvement. Although this study is limited to the examination of millennials, practical and social implications are noted for all donors. Organizations must recognize that donors are influenced by a combination of extrinsic and intrinsic factors when evaluating their value from charitable involvement. Most of all, donors seek a degree of social recognition from giving, so organizations are encouraged to provide ways for millennial donors to display or share their charitable involvement.     

Charitable bequest importance among donors to different types of charities

This paper explores differences in the self‐rated importance of charitable estate giving depending upon the type of charitable cause a person donates to during life. One theoretical motivation for lifetime giving is to personally enjoy benefits from improving a shared collective good. However, this motivation is not possible for bequests. Bequest transfers and resulting improvements occur after personal enjoyment of benefits is no longer possible. This paper hypothesizes that among donors to high personal benefit causes (those typically creating shared goods benefitting donors), interest in a charitable bequest (which offers no opportunity for receiving such benefits) will be relatively less than among donors to low personal benefit causes. In order to explore this, each charity type is categorized as providing high, low, or mixed personal benefits from shared collective goods. This hypothesis receives mixed support. Donors to international relief organizations, a low personal benefit charity type, do place a higher importance on charitable bequests than do donors to shared‐goods type causes such as neighborhood associations, service clubs, sports leagues, or “other” charities, including those focused on local public safety and crime. However, donors to arts organizations—a classic example of donors creating a shared good—have a relatively high interest in charitable bequests. One important exception to the exclusion of postmortem personal benefits could come from religious belief. Accordingly, donors to religious causes do place a higher importance on charitable bequests.     

We the living: the effects of living and deceased donor stories on charitable bequest giving intentions

Choosing messages to encourage charitable bequest giving may be particularly challenging given sensitivity to personal mortality reminders. Previous research suggests that people often react to mortality reminders with avoidance, including distancing themselves from those associated with death. We compare the effects of otherwise similar living and deceased bequest donor stories on subsequent intentions to leave a charitable bequest. Although both story types significantly increased subsequent intentions to leave a charitable bequest, living donor stories consistently outperformed otherwise identical deceased donor stories. Fundraisers may do well to emphasize stories of living planned bequest donors and de‐emphasize death and the deceased in charitable bequest fundraising messaging. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Charity brand personality: can smaller charitable organizations leverage their brand's personality to influence giving

The importance of establishing a strong brand identity has been the focus for consumer brand managers for decades. Organizations develop and communicate a distinctive brand personality as a means of attracting consumers and cultivating long‐term relationships. While the concept of branding has gained recent attention as an important strategy for nonprofit practitioners, little empirical data exist on the role a charity's brand personality might play in attracting donors. A few recent studies of large national charitable organizations provide support that charities exhibit distinctive personalities. This study explores whether smaller, local scope charitable organizations, without the benefit of national brand recognition, also exhibit distinctive brand personalities and whether such brand personalities influence donors. Results from five charitable organizations, from four distinct categories of cause, find that brand personality traits that are both differentiating and relevant to donors influence charitable giving. The findings provide nonprofit practitioners with valuable insights for leveraging their brand's personality to turn donor awareness into commitment and establish a stronger market position. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Are green consumers really green? Exploring the factors behind the actual consumption of organic food products

The increasing interest in sustainable consumption has lead several scholars to investigate the determinants that drive the consumption of organic food. Most of this research is based on consumers' self‐reports of their purchasing behavior by exploring declared behavioral intentions. There is a lack of understanding concerning the determinants of organic food consumption based on actual purchasing behavior. To fill this gap, this study is based on a combination of actual purchasing data and self‐reported data from a sample of 79 Italian consumers. The determinants of organic food consumption are explored by analyzing the effects of subjective norms, attitude, perceived behavioral control, intention to buy, organic knowledge, and health consciousness on actual purchasing behavior. Our results suggest that actual purchasing behavior is positively influenced by intention to buy and negatively by subjective norms. Although attitude towards buying organics is positively affected by health consciousness and perceived behavioral control, consumer knowledge about organics is found to influence purchase intentions. Theoretical and managerial implications, along with avenues for future research, are discussed.     

Exploring the interactive effects of brand use and gender on cause‐related marketing over time

Research has shown that men and women respond differently to cause‐related marketing (CRM) appeals with fictitious brands; however, few studies examine how CRM works for existing brands or measure long‐term effects. To fill these gaps, we explore the influence of sponsor brand use and gender on responses to a CRM campaign at three points in time (premessage, postmessage exposure, and 2‐week delay). We are the first study to identify the moderating effect of brand use on gendered responses to CRM messages. Nonbrand users increased their purchase intentions after CRM message exposure; this was especially true for men. Overall, our findings reinforce past research showing that CRM can positively influence short‐term purchase intentions. We reveal new insights that show CRM can work especially well among nonbrand buyers; however, no significant long‐term influence was found. Our results demonstrate the importance of segmenting the market by demographics and brand use as well as considering the long‐term implications of CRM persuasion.     

The Development of Corporate Charitable Contributions in the UK: A Stakeholder Analysis

This paper investigates the determinants of corporate charitable donations within a comparative study of corporate behaviour in two time periods, 1989–90 and 1998–99. The analysis is based on a longitudinal data set that includes over 400 UK listed companies. The determinants of corporate charitable donations are explored within a stakeholder model and the relationship between corporate charitable donations and a set of firm and industry variables is estimated using OLS. Particular emphasis is placed on industry effects and the impact of social and environmental stakeholders. The results highlight a significant change in behaviour between 1989–90 and 1998–99 that may reflect a strategic response by corporate decision‐makers to external concerns over corporate social responsibility. In the early period corporate charitable donations were substantially determined by profits. However, this relationship has weakened during the 1990s as firms have become increasingly responsive to stakeholder influences. The results for the later period emphasize the increasing importance of corporate visibility, and the development of social and environmental influences on corporate charitable contributions.     

Are religious people more caring? Exploring the impact of religiosity on charitable organizations in a developing country

• The purpose of this study is to explore the impact of religiosity on reasons that individuals volunteer. Additionally, this study will investigate the pro‐social attitudes towards helping others and charitable organizations. This study focuses on Indonesia where religion plays an important role in daily life. The data were derived from a convenience sampling at a large private university in Surabaya, Indonesia (N = 258). The results showed that individuals with high intrinsic and extrinsic personal religiosity were more likely to have ‘other‐oriented’ reasons when performing philanthropic activities. Nonetheless, religiosity did not influence attitudes of individuals towards helping others. This study contributes to the debate regarding the effect of religious values on pro‐social attitudes in the context of a developing country. Furthermore, the study provides social implications for researchers, policy makers and practitioners operating in a developing country. This is one of the first few studies exploring the impact of religion on attitude towards charitable organization in Indonesia.

Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Smallest Meaningful Pay Increases: Field Test,Constructive Replication,and Extension

The authors extend prior literature by examining, in two distinct field settings, smallest meaningful pay increases (SMPIs) in terms of magnitude, behavioral intention, and affective reactions. In Study 1, a two‐wave study of 177 employees of a university medical center in the United States, the authors find stable thresholds of about 5.0 percent for positive reactions to pay increases (magnitude [5.4 percent], behavioral intentions [4.2 percent], and affective reactions [5.6 percent]). In Study 2, a sample of 495 university employees in Finland, the authors also find stable but slightly higher thresholds of about 8 percent for behavioral intentions (8.4 percent) and positive affective reactions (7.2 percent) to pay increases. They also find threshold effects of ?5.7 percent for behavioral intentions and ?5.8 percent for negative affective reactions in response to restricted future pay increases levied in the transition to a new pay system. Discussion of the results centers on pay raise administration and future research regarding implied and direct pay reductions. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Segmenting the Belgian charitable sector: The impact of environmental factors on households' generosity

Research on charitable giving has known a renewed interest over the last years. Despite a recent evolution, the literature remains predominantly Anglo‐Saxon, and studies are consequently conducted in societies marked by a strong charitable giving culture. In that respect, donors are generally considered as isolated individuals, and the impact of social and environmental factors such as public policies, institutional specificities, and punctual events is often underestimated. Moreover, research on generosity often suffers from the absence of reliable data, free of desirability bias. Based on fiscal data of tax returns and gift tax returns provided by the official Belgian statistics bureau, this research investigates individual donating behaviors while considering the influence of environmental determinants on generosity. More specifically, we empirically assess the generosity of Belgian households over a period of 8 years marked by natural disasters, massive calls for public generosity, and changes in tax policies. Among other things, we qualify the results of previous research on the role of age and open the debate on the role of household composition as a variable for segmenting donors. Finally, we propose leads for future research in order to stimulate further academic effort on the topic.     

Nostalgia and giving to charity: a conceptual framework for discussion and research

• Academic work involving nostalgia has shown it to evoke a basket of emotions. This paper proposes a conceptual model that links nostalgia to charitable giving. We argue that the nostalgia evoked by certain NPOs (not‐for‐profit organizations) is likely to have a bearing on both emotional and familial utility derived by the donor. This in turn is likely to drive the donor commitment to the NPO. Thus by evoking nostalgia, certain NPOs are likely to emotionally engage their current and potential donors, which could facilitate the creation of long‐term intimate relationships between them and their donors. However, the extent to which the NPO can evoke nostalgia is likely to depend upon the nostalgia proneness of the donor, the emotional importance of the past experiences evoked by the NPO, and the characteristics of the NPO such as the extent to which the NPO can alleviate the feelings of alienation, discontinuity, and the need for authenticity experienced by the donor. The paper provides a series of research propositions and proposes a research agenda.

Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Cause‐related marketing campaigns with luxury firms: An experimental study of campaign characteristics,attitudes, and donations

• Cause‐related marketing (CRM) partnerships between luxury firms and charitable organizations have grown in popularity, yet no study has examined such luxury CRM campaigns thus far. Using a fictitious campaign by the Hotel Adlon Kempinski Berlin and the Plan International Germany charity, the authors conducted an experimental CRM study among 281 actual luxury consumers. Realizing CRM campaigns in the luxury segment can be promising for luxury firms and charities. In particular, a CRM campaign works best when the donation magnitude is high (25% vs. 1%) and the price of the luxury service offering is moderate (€180 vs. €450). Furthermore, luxury campaigns enhance the attitudes of luxury customers toward charitable organizations, especially if they are unknown brands. Yet this study also offers a warning that luxury campaigns can be risky if consumers who have previously supported the charitable organization perceive the campaign as too high profile. Ultimately, this study reveals that CRM luxury campaigns play a major role for fundraising success.

Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Relational exchange in nonprofits: The role of identity saliency and relationship satisfaction

In practice and research pertaining to charitable giving, the emphasis has been on identifying the characteristics and motivations of donors, but few have asked why donors continue to support a particular nonprofit. This study examines the relationship between renewing donors and nonprofits and their impact on charitable giving levels using identity salience and relationship satisfaction as key mediators of nonprofit relational exchange. In a survey of 719 repeat donors in the United States, to a broad range of nonprofit organizations, identity saliency and relationship satisfaction are introduced as mediating constructs, and the results confirm that both constructs partially guide donor motivations and charitable giving. Theoretically, this suggests that the more a donor identifies with a nonprofit organization and the more satisfied the donor is in the relationship with the organization, the higher their intention to donate. This finding supports previous research in segmentation strategies and service‐dominant logic in the nonprofit sector. Managerial implications of this research include indication of a paradigmatic shift from relational exchange to transformational exchange (or value cocreation) in nonprofit organizations' approach to donor cultivation.     

Evaluating cause‐marketing campaigns in the Indian corporate landscape: The role of consumer skepticism and consumer attributions of firm's motive

More and more business organizations are engaging in social initiatives to make a positive contribution to society. Cause marketing, such as CSR, is one of the many ways that firms can manifest social responsibility by pitching‐in where government solutions are few or takes time in implementation, and it is the only type that calls for consumer participation. Because customer participation is imperative for the success of the campaign, it must be designed to connect with consumers while also making them feel that corporate efforts are authentic and truly helping the cause and not exploitative of the social cause. Using fictitious brand, cause‐marketing campaigns were designed, and two studies were conducted to analyze the relationship between cause involvement, consumer attributions on firm's motive, and consumer attitudes towards cause campaigns, and if and how the relationship differs when consumer skepticism towards cause claims existed. Multivariate analysis performed for hypotheses testing suggests that cause involvement influenced campaign attitudes and the relationship was mediated by consumer attributions of firm's motive, and consumer skepticism towards cause campaigns affected the relationship.     

The impact of guilt and shame in charity advertising: The role of self-construal

Following the cognitive functional model in persuasive communication and the self-construal theory, this two-study design project examines the impact of guilt and shame in charity advertising. Study 1 was a survey that investigated the extent to which anticipatory guilt and shame operate in affecting people's purchase intention relating to a product with social causes. Study 2 was an experiment that examined the impact of guilt versus shame appeals in processing charity advertising messages. The role of self-construal was examined in both studies. Results indicated that both the anticipatory guilt and ad-induced guilt were positively connected with behavioral intentions. People with higher interdependent self-construal were more prone to charitable behaviors. The anticipatory shame was positively connected with behavioral intention, whereas the ad-induced shame was not. In addition, self-construal negatively moderated the effect of shame, such that the impact of anticipatory shame and shame arousal on behavioral intentions were more pronounced among people with higher independent self-construal.     

Examining company experiences of a UK cause‐related marketing campaign

The primary aim of the research was to examine commercial organisations' perceptions of the benefits of cause‐related marketing and the extent to which these benefits were achieved through their involvement with a UK cause‐related marketing campaign. The study also explored companies' views on the management of relationships between the profit and nonprofit organisations involved in a cause‐related marketing partnership. The research was conducted with companies involved in the cause‐related marketing campaign of one UK charity. Analysis of the data, gathered by means of a postal questionnaire, revealed that the benefits of cause‐related marketing perceived to be the most important in this context were increasing press coverage and raising brand awareness. Other important benefits included the opportunity to demonstrate social responsibility and enhance corporate reputation as well as building customer loyalty and increasing sales. Benefits achieved through participation in the cause‐related marketing campaign were limited to improved corporate reputation and social responsibility and press coverage. Recommendations for improved management of the partnership heavily emphasised joint planning processes, at the strategic and implementation levels. Copyright © 2003 Henry Stewart Publications     

Charity Ratings

How do charitable donors respond to the third‐party ratings that signal the quality of charities? I investigate this question using a novel data set from Charity Navigator, which provides quality ratings for 5,400 charities. Because Charity Navigator prominently displays a charity's star rating which is assigned based on its overall rating, one can identify the causal impact of a one star increase in ratings on charitable contributions with a regression discontinuity framework that exploits the threshold values of the overall ratings. I find that in general, the third‐party ratings have a minor and often insignificant impact on charitable contributions received by charities. However, for relatively small charities, a higher rating leads to an increase in charitable contributions received. In particular, for these charities, I find that a one star increase in ratings is associated with a 19.5% increase in the amount of charitable contributions received. This result is robust under alternative model specifications and highlights the role of the third‐party ratings in not‐for‐profit markets.