The Joy of Giving: Evidence from a Matching Experiment with Millionaires and the General Population

• In Event: Experiments in Fundraising

Abstract

Does charitable giving make people happy? If so, why? We conducted a field experiment among a large and representative population sample and a large sample of high wealth individuals to answer these questions. In a 1:1 match treatment, we provided additional money for charity at no cost to the donor to test whether the benefits of giving for recipients increased hedonic mood benefits of giving to donors. The results imply that people do not give to charity to make themselves happy. We suggest that matches work because they activate a sense of duty.

Authors

• Rene Bekkers, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam

• Paul Smeets, Maastricht University

• Ashley Whillans, Harvard Business School

• Michael Norton, Harvard Business School