Why Americans give: New research finds 5 distinct profiles for generosity

Given that fewer Americans are donating and volunteering^[1] and that people in the U.S. appear to be losing trust in one another^[2], it may seem like generosity has eroded in the United States.

The nation’s political, social and economic divides^[3] might only strengthen that impression. But my recent research suggests that this belief would be misguided.

I’m a professor who teaches and conducts research about nonprofits and philanthropy^[4]. To understand the diversity of American generosity, I teamed up with Paige Rice and Veronica Selzler^[5], two philanthropy consultants who contributed to the Generosity Commission’s report on U.S. generosity called “How and Why We Give^[6].”

The Generosity Commission is a nonpartisan group of leaders from across the charitable sector. Its 2023 report shared the results of a national survey of 2,569 U.S. adults.

Drawing on data from that study, we sought to understand how different kinds of people may be motivated to act generously for different reasons and, as a result, express their generosity differently.

The study defined generosity broadly in terms of efforts or gifts made to support people in need, charitable causes or philanthropic organizations through actions like giving and volunteering. Our study was published in March 2026^[8] in Nonprofit Management & Leadership, a peer-reviewed academic journal.

The overall propensity to give was about 82% based on responses to this question in the Generosity Commission’s survey: “On average, how much money do you donate each year to people in need, charitable causes, or philanthropic organizations?”

The survey also asked Americans about how they express their generosity.

We found that Americans’ generosity varies according to their aspirations, motivations and demographic characteristics. In other words, different kinds of Americans are generous in different ways.

Using a statistical modeling technique called latent profile analysis^[9], which can find hidden groups of people based on observed data, we identified five segments of American society. They come from the general population, not just existing donors or volunteers.

Change-minded hopefuls, about 42% of the total, are mostly women and people with low incomes. They genuinely want to help people but are held back mainly by not having enough money.

Flexible moderates, roughly 35% of the survey’s respondents, are a middle-of-the-road group without strong political or religious motivations. They are open to helping out in a wide variety of ways when given the opportunity.

Values-driven skeptics, around 11% of those surveyed, are mostly older, conservative, religious and male. They are willing to give money but are worried that charities might not make good use of it.

Status seekers, approximately 9% of the participants in the survey, are the most generous group. Affluent, educated and religious, they are highly active in giving and volunteering and are motivated by social recognition and personal benefits.

Frustrated activists, only about 4% of the total, are passionate, liberal and financially strapped. They are often women and people of color. They care deeply about causes and prefer to take direct action rather than giving money.

Why it matters

Each of these groups is relatively generous. For example, the percentage of people in each one donating to people in need, charitable causes or philanthropic organizations ranged from a low of 77% – the frustrated activists – to a high of 93% among the status seekers. This shows that Americans with different mindsets exhibit a willingness to help others, even if their aspirations, motivations and demographic characteristics differ.

For nonprofits looking to attract more donors and volunteers, it may help to understand that different groups of people may have different motivations and concerns. By appealing to each group’s distinct qualities, nonprofits may be able to garner more support for their causes.

What other research is being done

Researchers with the Lilly School of Philanthropy at Indiana University^[10] and their partners are conducting numerous studies about American generosity.

For example, in a study published in 2019, those researchers found a sharp decrease in the percentage of Americans who gave to nonprofits^[11] following the Great Recession. And their ongoing research on global philanthropy^[12] tracks cross-border giving for 47 countries, including the U.S., to document global trends in generosity.

The Research Brief^[13] is a short take about interesting academic work.

References

1. ^{^} fewer Americans are donating and volunteering (www.thegenerositycommission.org)
2. ^{^} people in the U.S. appear to be losing trust in one another (www.pewresearch.org)
3. ^{^} political, social and economic divides (theconversation.com)
4. ^{^} nonprofits and philanthropy (scholar.google.com)
5. ^{^} Paige Rice and Veronica Selzler (www.hattaway.com)
6. ^{^} How and Why We Give (www.thegenerositycommission.org)
7. ^{^} MirageC/Getty Images (www.gettyimages.com)
8. ^{^} study was published in March 2026 (doi.org)
9. ^{^} latent profile analysis (www.stata.com)
10. ^{^} Lilly School of Philanthropy at Indiana University (philanthropy.indianapolis.iu.edu)
11. ^{^} sharp decrease in the percentage of Americans who gave to nonprofits (scholarworks.indianapolis.iu.edu)
12. ^{^} research on global philanthropy (globalindices.indianapolis.iu.edu)
13. ^{^} Research Brief (theconversation.com)