Significance of this Study

The prevailing perception of women's giving is that women are more likely to give, but they give smaller amounts than men. Research in this area offers some support for this belief. Men and women do exhibit different charity choices and patterns of donating money. Males tend to concentrate their giving among a few charities, whereas females are more likely to spread the amounts they give across a wide range of charities (e.g., Andreoni, Brown, & Rischall, 2003; Piper & Schnepf, 2008). That is, "women are more egalitarian in their giving, while men are more strategic" (Brown, 2006). Previous research also indicates that women tend to give to organizations that have had an impact on them or someone they know personally (Parsons, 2004; Burgoyne, Young, & Walker, 2005). Subsequently, much of the empirical research indicates that men and women exhibit different charity choices and patterns of donating money. However, research has been inconsistent as to the differences in charity choice. This study offers a more comprehensive perspective of men and women's giving by examining the likelihood of giving across all charity subsectors, using a nationally representative sample of U.S. households.