Understanding Why People Give: Help for Struggling AIDS-Related Nonprofits

ABSTRACT

In this increasingly competitive environment for individual donors' time and money, it is especially important for nonprofits and especially AIDS-related nonprofits to better understand why people behave altruistically. Using the empathy-altruism hypothesis from social psychology, we develop and test a model of altruistic behavior in an AIDS-related context. By understanding the impact that cognitive empathy, emotional empathy, and dispositional empathy have on altruistic behavior, AIDS-related nonprofits should be able to implement a strategy that improves their competitive position with potential and current donors. Initiatives in communication and marketing strategy are described to offer a more effective strategic focus that should improve donor development and fund-raising success not only for AIDS-related nonprofits but nonprofits in general.

KEYWORDS:

• Nonprofit
• AIDS
• fundraising
• empathy
• altruism
• marketing
• strategy