“DO WHAT IS RIGHT, COME WHAT MAY”: A CROSS-COUNTRY STUDY ON CHARITY

Abstract

This article investigates the motivations behind charitable behavior and tries to access the role played by government in influencing its level. Considering impure altruistic models on charity, we regress 2010 cross-country charity data (money donations, volunteered time and help to strangers) on institutional, demographics and economic variables, using SURE, OLS and Fractional Logit estimation procedures. Our econometric tests show institutional and demographic variables are even more relevant than the so-called crowd-out effect from government expenditure in determining charitable behavior. These findings indicate the design of oriented public policy may not be enough for the development of a pro-charity ethos.