Working Paper: NBER ID: w11611
Authors: Craig Landry; Andreas Lange; John A. List; Michael K. Price; Nicholas G. Rupp
Abstract: This study develops theory and uses a door-to-door fundraising field experiment to explore the economics of charity. We approached nearly 5000 households, randomly divided into four experimental treatments, to shed light on key issues on the demand side of charitable fundraising. Empirical results are in line with our theory: in gross terms, our lottery treatments raised considerably more money than our voluntary contributions treatments. Interestingly, we find that a one standard deviation increase in female solicitor physical attractiveness is similar to that of the lottery incentive¡ªthe magnitude of the estimated difference in gifts is roughly equivalent to the treatment effect of moving from our theoretically most attractive approach (lotteries) to our least attractive approach (voluntary contributions).
Keywords: charity; fundraising; lotteries; voluntary contributions; field experiment
JEL Codes: C93; H41; L30
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| lottery treatments (H27) | total contributions (D64) |
| lottery treatments (H27) | participation rates (J22) |
| female solicitor physical attractiveness (L84) | average contributions (D64) |