Understanding Private Philanthropy in the European Context: What drives Charitable Giving and which Causes benefit?

During the last decade, private philanthropy and its role to finance the public good have gained increased attention within Europe. In contrast to Anglo-Saxon countries, however, very little is known about charitable giving and its determinants, as scholarly research on this topic is only just emerging in most European countries. This project contributes to giving research by explaining individual charitable behaviour in the European context. First, it explores how different theoretical approaches contribute to explain donor behaviour and enhances the existing approaches with the concept of lifestyle. Second, it investigates the determinants of donor preferences for particular charitable causes and provides insights into the redistributive character of private giving. Finally, this research analyses how national policies, tax regulations, and welfare regimes influences giving behaviour in a cross-country comparison. The source data for the investigation derives from surveys in Austria, from Austrian tax records, and from two European surveys.