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Field
Abstract
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Before
This study investigates the motivations behind charitable giving after the provision of a public good, following the approval of a new climate law through a referendum. An environmental NGO is launching its first fundraising appeal after this policy success, creating a setting in which the core policy outcome has already been secured. This context allows us to examine whether post-policy donations are driven primarily by expressive warm-glow motives or by instrumental considerations about continued impact.
We implement a natural field experiment with 3,367 potential donors using a 2×2 design. The first treatment dimension varies the motivational framing of the appeal: the message either emphasizes expressive participation and the symbolic value of being part of a successful civic movement (warm-glow framing), or it highlights the instrumental role of donations in financing concrete follow-up activities and ensuring effective implementation of the law (instrumental framing). The second treatment dimension varies the spatial scope of benefits emphasized in the appeal, focusing either on local benefits for Hamburg or on global climate benefits. This allows us to test whether donors exhibit parochial preferences and whether spatial scope interacts with motivational framing.
Randomization is stratified by past donation behavior, nationality and prior engagement with the NGO. The primary outcomes are the donation decision and donation amount. The experiment provides causal evidence on expressive versus instrumental motivations and on the role of spatial scope and parrochialism in pro-environmental giving after a public good has already been provided
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After
This study investigates the motivations behind charitable giving after the provision of a public good, following the approval of a new climate law through a referendum. An environmental NGO is launching its first fundraising appeal after this policy success, creating a setting in which the core policy outcome has already been secured. This context allows us to examine whether post-policy donations are driven primarily by expressive warm-glow motives or by instrumental considerations about continued impact.
We implement a natural field experiment with 3,367 potential donors using a 2×2 design. The first treatment dimension varies the motivational framing of the appeal: the message either emphasizes expressive participation and the symbolic value of being part of a successful civic movement (warm-glow framing), or it highlights the instrumental role of donations in financing concrete follow-up activities and ensuring effective implementation of the law (instrumental framing). The second treatment dimension varies the spatial scope of benefits emphasized in the appeal, focusing either on local benefits for Hamburg or on global climate benefits. This allows us to test whether donors exhibit parochial preferences and whether spatial scope interacts with motivational framing.
Randomization is stratified by past donation behavior, nationality and prior engagement with the NGO. The primary outcomes are the donation decision and donation amount. The experiment provides causal evidence on expressive versus instrumental motivations and on the role of spatial scope and parochialism in pro-environmental giving after a public good has already been provided
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