Regional Differences Found in Giving and Volunteering

Geography matters in stimulating donations of time and money, a new report suggests.

An analysis of data from a nationwide survey by Independent Sector, a coalition of foundations and nonprofit organizations, concludes that people in different areas of the United States respond disproportionately to different factors in deciding how much to give and volunteer.

In the Northeast, for example, the most salient factors include whether household members volunteer, either alone or together as a family, and whether they have gone to college. Households that volunteer as a family donate 163 percent more than those that do not: $2,657 annually, compared with $1,009. In no other region does that factor have such a large effect on giving. Similarly, Northeasterners who have attended college give 123 percent more than those who have not ($1,701 compared with $763).

Fifty-five percent of married people in the Northeast volunteer, compared with 33 percent of single people — showing that marriage influences giving more there than in any other region.

In the South, by contrast, religious observance correlates highly with charitable giving. Households where people attend religious services weekly give 143 percent more than those that do not — $2,252 versus $928, the largest difference of any region.

Giving by Married Couples

In the Midwest, charitable giving by married people is 124 percent greater than among unmarried people, a larger gap than in any other region.

In the West, homeownership is a more significant factor in giving than in other regions. Annual giving by people who own their homes is 174 percent higher than among renters: $2,522 compared with $922.

The report is based on an analysis of data collected in May through July of 2001 in a national telephone survey of 4,216 adult Americans.

Copies of the report, “A Nation of Givers: Regional Patterns in American Giving and Volunteering,” can be obtained by calling the Independent Sector Publications Center at (888) 860-8118. The price is $11.95 per copy for members, $15.95 for nonmembers, plus $4.50 for shipping and handling. Subscribers to the entire Giving and Volunteering Signature series of seven reports (of which this study is one) receive a 15-percent discount.