EMBARKING ON A REPUBLIC OF BENEVOLENCE - NEW SURVEY FINDINGS ON CHARITABLE GIVING

In this article, the authors provide a tentative answer to a vexing st atistical question about the level of charitable giving in the United States: Why does the Independent Sector's (IS) Survey of Giving and Vo lunteering consequently estimate personal contributions to nonprofit o rganizations to be 65% to 75% lower than corresponding estimates repor ted by the American Association of Fund-Raising Counsel (AAFRC). The a uthors' analysis of several additional surveys suggests that there is sufficient new evidence to conclude that average annual household givi ng is closer to an AAFRC-based estimate of $1,167 than to the IS's pub lished estimate of $696. This would herald the good news that levels o f charitable giving are indeed higher-at least 34% and perhaps up to 4 8% higher-than previously reported from survey data. These findings in dicate that a substantial upward revision in the perceived amount of a nnual charitable giving is in order.