Spirit Of Giving Gets Stronger; Donors Have Lingering Queries - Study

Tom Burroughes

10 November 2017

A study of 3,200 donors in the US finds that almost two-thirds of respondents (64 per cent) want to increase charitable gifts, in what appears to be a welcome result in the “giving season” as the last two months of the calendar year are known.

, a public charity issued a study called Overcoming Barriers to Giving, which found that the primary obstacles to increased giving were based on financial circumstances (72 per cent) and concern about the impact of giving (65 per cent). While donors have other questions and concerns, bridging the gap about finances and charity effectiveness has the greatest potential to help donors realize their giving goals, the study said.

Findings from the study include that three-quarters of donors cite at least one concern about financing their giving; almost half of donors say a greater tax benefit or the ability to take a larger tax deduction would influence them to give more; however, 59 per cent of donors are likely missing out on significant tax advantages related to giving.

Two-thirds of donors say understanding their impact would influence them to give more, with 81 per cent of donors citing questions or concerns about impact. These concerns range from unease about determining an organization’s credibility to frustrations that some non-profits do not always explain how a donation will be used, the study added.