Written by Chris Rider

4 mins read

Over the last few weeks, there have been numerous heart-warming stories of good deeds cutting through gloomy headlines. From inspiring numbers signing up as NHS volunteers to controversial celebrity donations, people are generously giving their time and money to help in the battle against Covid-19.

Source: Giphy Images

In this week’s article I will be discussing some of the behavioural economic drivers behind why people give to charity.

No such thing as a selfless good deed?

The age-old debate of whether any good deed is truly altruistic can be settled right here, right now. There isn’t. But that shouldn’t undermine our good deeds.

Research by neuroscientists has shown that helping others makes us feel good (Ritvo, 2014). Acts of generosity induce a chemical reaction in our brains. Each act releases the chemicals dopamine, serotonin and oxytocin, known collectively as the Happiness Trifecta. These boost our moods, improve our sleep and increase overall happiness. Excitingly, it doesn’t seem to matter how large an act is, acts both small and large give us a happiness trifecta hit! From picking up your grandma’s prescription, to mega donations like Ryan Reynolds and Blake Lively’s $1m to food banks, all of these acts will make us feel good, as well as helping others.

This has been supported by Dan Ariely, Professor of Psychology and Behavioural Economics at Duke University. Ariely (2014) found that charitable giving helps to satisfy our egos, which in turn makes us happier. This feeling is enhanced when donations are specific and have a personal connection. We’ve seen examples of donations specifically made to help people’s hometowns/countries in the world of sport. Footballer Wilfried Zaha’s offering up his 50 luxury London properties to NHS staff, and Pep Guiadiola’s €1m donation towards medical supplies in his home country of Spain. With Covid-19 we’ve all been affected to some extent, either through restrictions to our everyday activities, or friends and family contracting the virus. Donations we make to help those affected by this virus, as both people above have done, should therefore give us an even bigger happiness boost.

Social Pressure

One of the most widespread, and least talked about influences of charitable giving is social pressure (Licen, 2016). This can be positive, such as seeing friends volunteering and wanting to mimic their actions. But social pressure can also encourage us to curb socially unacceptable behaviours when exposed publicly.

This last week has seen derision over the eye-watering £2m per month ‘rent’ being charged by the owners of the Excel Centre to the NHS. As well as seeing Matt Hancock calling for Premier League footballers to take pay-cuts to prevent the need for clubs using the furlough scheme. Both of which have resulted in public outcries, with the taxpayers questioning why they should be footing the bill to support mega-wealthy organisations.

Thankfully, the Excel Centre’s owners have announced a U-turn and they will now cover the rental costs for the new Nightingale Hospital themselves. However, when reflecting on this charitable decision, was it driven by pure altruism? Highly improbable. Especially as they seemed happy to charge rent prior to it becoming public knowledge. Was it influenced by social pressure to protect their reputation? Much more likely.

Our drive to act socially, and to protect our reputation, is suggested by social psychologists as arising from our evolutionary beginnings (Harari, 2014). Early humans developed as social animals and relied upon social relationships to eat, trade and live together. Those who failed to act pro-socially in groups risked finding themselves shunned from communities and less likely to survive. This creates pressure for people and businesses to act in-line with societal expectations. There is also great economic value in having a strong or trusted reputation, which too drives behaviour. Damaged reputations inhibit your abilities in several ways, such as trade and influence. So acts of so-called ‘generosity’ now, could (perhaps cynically) be considered as calculated costs to meet social pressures, which may be financially lucrative in the future.

With the Excel’s owner’s reputation restored for now, will Premier League clubs follow suit? Or is the support for Premier League football too strong for this to threaten their reputation?

Self-promotion

One other cynical influence behind charitable giving is self-promotion. By publicly donating large amounts to charity, known as ‘conspicuous giving’, some see this as an opportunity to promote their image in the hope their ‘selfless’ act will reach the headlines.

This back-fired for Kim Kardasian recently. She was accused of using the announcement of her $1m Covid-19 donation as a springboard to re-launch her popular SKIMS range. Although 20% of her re-release is going to charity, it opened up the question of her motives. Particularly in comparison with the likes of Justin Bieber, whose donation to help fight Covid-19 was undisclosed. His money will still help those in need, but he hasn’t turned it into a marketing ploy… yet.

Last thought

People’s motivations behind giving to charity are complex, varied and may include many differing factors. As the research above shows, we will always get something out of each kind act we make. But ultimately, does it really matter so long as the causes we care about are getting the support they need?

References

Ariely, D. (2016). What makes us feel good about our work? TedX. Retrieved 3 April 2020 from: (https://www.ted.com/talks/dan_ariely_what_makes_us_feel_good_about_our_work?language=en

BBC (2020). Coronavirus: Premier League players should take a pay cut – Matt Hancock. BBC. Retrieved 3 April 2020 from: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/52142267

Harari, Y. N., Harari, Y. N., Purcell, J., & Watzman, H. (2015). Sapiens: A brief history of humankind.

Hawkins, B. (2020). Footballers’ good deeds during coronavirus pandemic. Talksport. Retrieved 2 April 2020 from: https://talksport.com/football/685890/footballers-good-deeds-during-coronavirus-pandemic-pep-guardiola-liverpool-manchester-united-jose-mourinho/

Hills, M. (2020). Kim Kardashian criticised for $1million coronavirus relief donation while promoting her shapewear brand Skims. Evening Standard. Retrieved 3 April 2020 from: https://www.standard.co.uk/insider/alist/kim-kardashian-backlash-million-dollar-coroanvirus-donation-skims-a4402446.html

Licen, M, Hartmann, F, Repovs, G. and Slapnicar, S. (2016). The Impact of Social Pressure and Monetary Incentive on Cognitive Control. Frontiers in Psychology. Retrieved 3 April 2020 from: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2016.00093/full

PA Media (2020). ExCeL owner scraps all fees for NHS to use Nightingale field hospital. The Guardian. Retrieved 5 April 2020 from: https://www.theguardian.com/society/2020/apr/05/excel-owner-scraps-all-fees-for-nhs-to-use-nightingale-field-hospital

Reuters (2020). Pep Guardiola makes €1m donation to aid Spain’s fight against coronavirus. Guardian. Retrieved 2 April 2020 from: https://www.theguardian.com/football/2020/mar/24/pep-guardiola-makes-1m-donation-to-aid-spains-fight-against-coronavirus

Ritvo, E. (2014). The Neuroscience of Giving. Psychology Today. Retrieved 2 April 2020 from: https://www.psychologytoday.com/gb/blog/vitality/201404/the-neuroscience-giving

Shah, O., Meddings, S, Pogrund, G. and Wheeler, C. (2020). Coronavirus: Abu Dhabi charges NHS millions in rent for super-hospital in ExCeL London. The Times. Retrieved 5 April 2020 from: https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/coronavirus-abu-dhabi-charges-nhs-millions-in-rent-for-super-hospital-in-excel-london-5zdlpbxhs

Singh, O. (2020). Celebrities Coronavirus Donations Pandemic Relei Efforts. Insider. Retried 2 April 2020 from: https://www.insider.com/celebrities-coronavirus-donations-pandemic-relief-efforts-2020-3