World Vision Holiday Giving Survey Shows Young Men Most Likely to Give the Gift of Charity

SEATTLE (November 6, 2013) — Headlines this year have not been kind to young men — often tagged as selfish Millennials, significantly more likely to still live with mom and dad, less likely than women to be enrolled in U.S. colleges — but a new holiday giving survey from World Vision shows that men ages 18-34 are in fact the most likely to have ever given someone a gift in the form of a charitable donation.

Young men

The World Vision survey, which is conducted annually as part of the World Vision Gift Catalog campaign, revealed that 56 percent of men ages 18-34 have given a charitable gift, versus 36 percent of older men (ages 35 and above) and 37 percent of their female counterparts in the same age group.

“Based on what we’ve seen at World Vision, young men might be more aptly coined the ‘misunderstood generation’,” said Cheryl DeBruler, Gift Catalog Specialist at World Vision. “Young adults are a huge force in what we do – whether it’s advocacy, volunteering or fundraising. Historically they’ve even led some of our campaigns against global issues like AIDS and hunger. They’re a case study of compassion in action.”

Young women

World Vision’s survey, conducted online by Harris Interactive among over 2,000 U.S. adults, also found that giving to charity makes young women happier: 65 percent of women ages 18-34 who ever donated money to charity say they feel happier in general when they give, compared to 41 percent of older women (ages 35 and above) and 44 percent of men ages 18-34.

In general

These results come as somewhat of a surprise given American adults’ general suppositions about holiday giving: 44 percent of all adults believe older people are more likely to give to charity than younger people. And, only 7 percent believe today’s young people are more generous than previous generations.

Other findings from World Vision’s survey include:

• Nearly 9 in 10 of all U.S. adults (86 percent) say they donate money to charity.
• Regardless of religious affiliation, 42 percent say giving to charity makes them feel like a good person.
• 3 in 5 adults (61 percent) think giving to charity is a good teaching tool for children, yet only about 2 in 5 parents* who donate money to charity do so in order to teach their children about generosity (43 percent)

In its sixth year, World Vision’s Holiday Giving Survey aims to raise awareness of the state of holiday giving and prompt the public to meet the substantive needs of others. To learn more about meaningful ways to give to children, communities and families within the U.S. and internationally, browse the World Vision Gift Catalog at www.WorldVisionGifts.org or call 855-WV-GIFTS.

*“Parents” refers to U.S. adults ages 18+ who have children under the age of 18 living in their household.

About the World Vision Holiday Giving Survey
This survey was conducted online within the United States by Harris Interactive on behalf of World Vision from October 21-23, 2013, among 2,033 adults ages 18 and older. This online survey is not based on a probability sample and therefore no estimate of theoretical sampling error can be calculated. For complete survey methodology, including weighting variables and subgroup sample sizes, please contact Christine Connolly Bell, 323-208-2444, or Natalie Bisaro at 708-434-5006.

About the World Vision Gift Catalog
Since 1996, the World Vision Gift Catalog has given people the opportunity to better the lives of children, adults and communities in the U.S. and around the world through hundreds of gifts in all different areas of need: clean water, food, education, sexual exploitation, job training and others. Last fiscal year more than 186,000 donors purchased more than 475,000 gifts that raised over $33.7 million. To order from World Vision’s Gift Catalog, visit www.WorldVisionGifts.org or call toll-free 855-WV-GIFTS. Want to see where your dollars go? Watch how the Gift Catalog works through the WorldVisionUSA YouTube channelExternal Link.

About World Vision:
World Vision is a Christian humanitarian organization conducting relief, development, and advocacy activities in its work with children, families, and their communities in nearly 100 countries to help them reach their full potential by tackling the causes of poverty and injustice. World Vision serves all people regardless of religion, race, ethnicity, or gender. For more information, please visit www.WorldVision.org/media-center/ or on Twitter @WorldVisionUSA.