Emotions vs Efficiency in Fundraising Appeals

Our research seeks to understand how a blend of efficiency information and emotionally evocative imagery impact donor behavior. While the impact of singular pieces of information on donation decisions is well-documented, there is a gap in the literature regarding the simultaneous effect of multiple information types. We consider these two types of information especially interesting since there is evidence suggesting that both are useful in moderation but can lead to harmful consequences. Given that real-world charity fundraising often combines appeals to both efficiency and emotion, our study aims to test their interaction. We employ a 2x2 experimental design varying overhead information and emotional appeals to donors, closely mimicking actual donation solicitations. We test this research question through two sets of experiments – a laboratory experiment run at a university, along with an experiment using a nationally representative sample survey through CloudResearch’s Connect platform. Our experiment at the university allows us to analyze how Generation Z (Gen Z) reacts to common philanthropic marketing techniques of including financial efficiency information and emotionally charged imagery. Additionally, the Connect experiment allows us to compare how our results in the lab apply to the broader U.S. population.