Conservatives and liberals are equally likely to fund local causes, but liberals are more apt to also donate to national and global groups – new research

Image description

The big idea

Conservatives were less generous overall than liberals during an experiment in which people could give some money to COVID-19 relief charities. Conservative participants also overwhelmingly preferred to use this opportunity to give to local charities rather than national ones, even if they expressed more nationalistic sentiments than liberals.

These are the main findings of a study we recently published in Political Psychology, an academic journal. Our research group also included Marilynn Brewer, Orgul Ozturk, Adriana Pinate and Giulia Urso.

We conducted an online experiment with 932 U.S. and 723 Italian residents in 2020. We gave US$5 to the Americans and 4 euros to the Italians – amounts that were roughly equivalent in value at the time of the study. They could keep that money or allocate all or part of this small sum to one of three charities. One was active at the local level – a U.S. state or an Italian region. The other two were national and global causes. The charities’ names were not specified. Participants wishing to give the money away had to first choose one charity and then decide how much to give.

After deciding how much they wanted to donate and which kind of group their gifts would fund, participants completed a survey regarding their ideological orientation and the degree to which they identified with the local, national and global community.

Overall, conservatives donated 31% of their $5 or 4 euros. Liberals gave away 48%.

Conservatives and liberals alike preferred to support local charities, and the amounts they donated were roughly the same: 22% of the money they could keep or give away for conservatives and 21% for liberals. The other donations differed. Liberals gave 14% to national and 13% to global charities. Conservatives gave 6% to national and 2% to global charities.

This pattern surprised us because 45% of conservatives, as opposed to 18% of liberals, stated they most closely identify as Americans or Italians rather than identifying more with their state or region across the three groups. We were also intrigued to see 39% of liberals saying they identified the most as members of the global community. Only 8% of conservatives said they felt that way.

About 1 in 5 of the participants identified as moderates. Fittingly, the way they chose to donate or keep the money they received during the experiment fell between how liberals and conservatives responded.

Why it matters

Other researchers have studied generosity by letting people choose between donating to national or foreign causes. But those are not the only options available or the only kinds of geographic allegiances people have.

Understanding how liberals and conservatives tend to give to charity is important because of the growth of political polarization, which has the potential to hinder collective action.

Our finding that both conservatives and liberals may prefer helping others at the local level could be relevant in terms of how to best respond to collective crises like pandemics and climate change.

What other research is being done

A large-scale study conducted in 42 countries prior to our own also found that conservatives tend to be less generous than liberals.

However, the researchers who conducted that earlier study didn’t assess preferences for giving to local groups.

Previously we examined data collected at the same time to see whether exposure to the COVID-19 pandemic was tied to greater generosity. We found that it was.

What still isn’t known

People may behave differently in experiments like this and in real life.

Some researchers have found that study participants tend to display more generosity than they otherwise would. Yet substantial evidence points to significant correlation.

And while our U.S. and Italian results were remarkably similar, we cannot be sure that they would necessarily be the same everywhere else.

Gianluca Grimalda, Researcher of Experimental Economics, Kiel Institute for the World Economy and Nancy R. Buchan, Associate Professor of International Business, University of South Carolina

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

The Conversation

Tu opinión enriquece este artículo:

Todos los campeones del Mundial de Clubes: ¿sabes qué equipos la han ganado más veces? (una copa con absoluta hegemonía española)

(Una creación colaborativa de MotorHome, Red InfoNegocios, XDXT) La competencia que define al club más grande del mundo: historia, datos y análisis estratégico. La Historia de los Reyes del Fútbol Mundial.Desde su inicio en 2000, el Mundial de Clubes de la FIFA ha consolidado su lugar como la máxima competición intercontinental, heredera de la mítica Copa Intercontinental, que desde 1960 enfrentaba a los campeones de Europa y Sudamérica. 

Tiempo de lectura: 5 minutos

Dónde ver gratis la final del Mundial de Clubes 2025 (transmisión histórica y revolucionaria del streaming deportivo, para la que DANZ invirtió 1000 millones de dólares)

(Por Maurizio y Maqueda en una creación colaborativa de MotorHome y XDXT) ¿dónde podrán los seguidores ver estos partidos de manera gratuita, legal y en alta calidad? La respuesta marca un cambio radical en la forma en que consumimos el fútbol global. Gracias a la plataforma de streaming DAZN, este año la transmisión del torneo, por primera vez en la historia, gratis, como nunca antes. 

Tiempo de lectura: 5 minutos 

Chelsea vs. PSG son los finalistas del Mundial de Clubes 2025 (fecha, horario, sede, estadísticas y todo lo que debes saber)

(Por Creación colaborativa de MotorHome, Red Infonegocios y XDXT) La gran final del nuevo Mundial de Clubes, un evento que trasciende el fútbol. Ambos equipos, tras eliminar a sus rivales en semifinales, se preparan para disputar la gloria en un evento que combina deporte, espectáculo, experiencias crossing y un despliegue de marketing y entretenimiento al estilo Super Bowl. 

Duración de lectura: 5 minutos 

Tampa (Florida): ¿sabías que está cambiando totalmente su downtown para ser una ciudad del futuro?

(Por Taylor y Vera) Tampa no solo mira hacia el futuro, ¡lo construye! Un ejemplo de como un plan estratégico creado por los mejores talentos fuera del sistema gubernamental y la decisión de salir de la burocracia y el estatus quo, cambian ciudades. En 2019, la alcaldesa Jane Castor lanzó la visión Transforming Tomorrow, una hoja de ruta que busca convertir a Tampa en una ciudad más inclusiva, moderna y resiliente.

Tiempo de lectura: 5 minutos

¿Por qué Coquina Beach es el destino más bello para visitar en Florida y EEUU en 2025? (seguro no lo conocías)

(Por Vera) En un mundo donde la belleza natural y la experiencia auténtica se convierten en los principales reclamos turísticos, Coquina Beach emerge como un destino imprescindible en Florida y en todo Estados Unidos en 2025. ¿Qué hace a esta playa tan especial? ¿Por qué cada vez más viajeros, inversionistas y amantes del deporte y la cultura la consideran el paraíso escondido del sur de Florida? 


Tiempo de lectura: 5 minutos 

¿Qué es el Storybeing y cómo revoluciona el marketing en la era de las experiencias phygitales y crossing? (parte II)

La evolución de las historias en el marketing. Desde los orígenes del storytelling, las marcas han buscado conectar con sus audiencias a través de historias, acciones y experiencias. Pero en un mundo donde la tecnología y la innovación transforman rápidamente cómo interactuamos, surge un nuevo concepto que va más allá de contar o vivir historias: el Storybeing. 

Duración de lectura: 5 minutos 

Turismo Internacional en Florida, Miami y Orlando: ¿Cuál es el plan en marcha para superar los desafíos y seguir creciendo en el 2025?

(Por Vera) Florida, Miami y Orlando han sido durante décadas el destino predilecto de millones de turistas internacionales, impulsando la economía, generando empleos y posicionando a EE.UU. como uno de los principales polos turísticos del mundo. Sin embargo, en los últimos años, diversos factores están poniendo a prueba la resiliencia de esta industria.

Tiempo de lectura: 5 minutos