Showing papers by "Steffen Huck published in 2020"

Online Fundraising, Self-Image, and the Long-Term Impact of Ask Avoidance

Abstract: We provide the first field evidence pointing at the role of pure self-image, independent of social image, in charitable giving. In an online fundraising campaign for a social youth project run on a...

Personalized fundraising: A field experiment on threshold matching of donations

Abstract: While increasing the number of small donors, standard linear matching schemes have been shown to cause considerable crowding out in charitable giving with pronounced effects on large gifts. We propose a form of threshold matching where donations above a certain, potentially personalized, threshold are topped up with a fixed amount. We show theoretically that threshold matching can induce crowd-ing in if appropriately personalized. In a field experiment, we explore how thresholds should be chosen depending on past donations. We find that the opti-mal choice of thresholds is rather bold, approximately 60-75% above past dona-tions. Additionally, we explore how thresholds should be set for new donors as a function of their personal characteristics and demonstrate the benefits of person-alization as opposed to setting general thresholds applying to all recipients of a fundraising call.

Discrimination, Narratives and Family History: An Experiment with Jordanian Host and Syrian Refugee Children

Abstract: We measure the prevalence of discrimination between Jordanian host and Syrian refugee children attending school in Jordan. Using a simple sharing experiment, we find only little discrimination. Among the Jordanian children, however, we see that those who descended from Palestinian refugees do not discriminate at all, suggesting that a family history of refugee status can generate solidarity with new refugees. We also find that parents' narratives about the refugee crisis are correlated with the degree of discrimination, suggesting that discriminatory preferences are being transmitted through parental attitudes.

Charitable giving by the poor: A field experiment in Kyrgyzstan

Abstract: Previous studies of charitable giving have focused on middle- or high-income earners in Western countries, neglecting the poor, although the lowest income groups are often shown to contribute substantial shares of their income to charitable causes. In a large-scale natural field experiment with over 180,000 clients of a micro-lending company in Kyrgyzstan, we study charitable giving by a population that is much poorer than the typical donors studied so far. In a 2x2 design, we explore two main (pre-registered) hypotheses about giving by the poor: (i) that they are more price sensitive than the rich such that, in contrast to previous studies, matching incentives induce crowding in of out-of-pocket donations; (ii) that they care about their proximity to the charitable project. We find evidence in favor of the former but not the latter.

Voluntary "donations" versus reward-oriented "contributions": Two experiments on framing in funding mechanisms

Abstract: In an artefactual field experiment we implement a crowdfunding campaign for a club good-an institute's summer party with free food, drinks, and music-and compare "donation" and "contribution" framings. We find that the "donation" frame generates higher income than the "contribution" frame. While individuals in the "donation" frame give substantially larger amounts, the individuals in the "contribution" frame respond more strongly to reward thresholds and suggestions. An additional survey experiment on M-Turk indicates that the term "donation" triggers more positive emotional responses, and that emotions are highly correlated with giving. It appears that making a "donation" is perceived as a more voluntary act and is, thus, more successful at generating warm glow than making a "contribution". We conjecture that this extends to other funding mechanisms.