This study uses panel data on a sample of non-government organizations (NGOs) to estimate the factors that motivate donors to contribute to them. The results of empirical estimation suggest that a mix of conventional and tax factors influence donors. The results are consistent with the...

Charitable donations are often made through intermediaries who can fund themselves from these same donations. Donors who purchase charitable output through an intermediary incur a principal-agent problem with unobservable prices. We compare charitable giving in an experiment with and without...

Most economic models are based on the self-interest hypothesis that assumes that all people are exclusively motivated by their material self-interest. In recent years experimental economists have gathered overwhelming evidence that systematically refutes the self-interest hypothesis and suggests...