Abstract: | Although corporate contributions to charity have been the subject of much discussion and research, little attention and research has been devoted to understanding charitable gift-giving behavior of individuals. Using exchange theory, we provide explanations for gift-giving behavior of older adults. A model is developed and tested using LISREL. The results suggest that social interaction and control motivations are important predictors of gift-giving behavior. Contrary to expectation, esteem enhancement motivations were negatively related to charitable gift giving. These results provide partial support for an exchange-theory-based explanation of older adults' gift-giving behavior. © 1996 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. |