A Giving Society

Just Giving recently held its annual awards ceremony showcasing fantastic fundraising achievements and truly astounding examples of commitment and perseverance (http://www.marathonmad105.com/). These feats rely both on the fundraisers’ gifts of time and effort and on the money pledged by inspired donors, together motivated by a range of fantastic causes.

The UK Government is looking to better understand how it can inspire more people to give freely time and money, and in the process to develop a “Big Society”. This is the subject of the current Giving Green Paper, published along with a series of informing essays which are well worth a read.

Broadly the paper outlines three potential catalysts for a more giving society:

• Decentralisation of state power and removal of red tape
• New technology platforms – such as JustGiving’s innovative online platform
• Learning from behavioural science

Although some question the motivations behind the Big Society project, few would argue against the basic principle of encouraging people to contribute more to society, be it through the state in taxation, directly to causes in the form of time and money, or through ethical purchasing. From this perspective – examining the motivations behind peoples decisions to give – I welcome the paper as an opportunity to explore insights that can help unlock generosity and the contributions individuals can make to wider society.

From a background in psychology, I’m particularly drawn to study in from this discipline and the emerging field of behavioural economics. David Halpern has been recently drafted in to head up the Government's behavioural insight team and shares some of the latest views from these fields in his essay accompanying the Giving Green Paper.

Giving makes us happy – “For it is in giving that we receive”

While this is not a new insight from a religious or philosophical perspective, Halpern draws attention to the work of Elizabeth Dunn of British Columbia, whose research demonstrates that the more people donate to charitable causes, the higher their reported wellbeing – regardless of their actual income. This was supported by a case study of employee bonuses, and experiments where participants were allocated to spend windfalls either on others or themselves. Notably in both cases the size of a bonus did not impact the result.

The reciprocal benefits of volunteering are more tangible – valuable experiences and social connections. It is therefore less surprising that studies have shown that volunteering is associated with increased life satisfaction, both among volunteers and in the communities around them.

Positive Externalities – better for all

Recent research has also shown that giving makes those around the giver happier, or in the language of economics, has a positive externality. This is in contrast to increasing income and consumption. For example, earning more and buying a shiny new car may make one feel better in the short term but will leave your neighbours feeling worse off. Increased levels of giving may have an impact on a society's happiness that traditional conceptions of economic activity do not.

Selfish giving and showing off

In his informing essay, Geoffrey Miller applies the utilitarian lens of Evolutionary Psychology to argue that apparent altruism is used as a signal of social status, moral prestige and reputation – put simply, it makes for an attractive mate. In this way giving operates much like other consumptive displays of wealth. One implication of this is that people are more prone to displays of giving rather than concerns over the efficacy of their chosen charity. This is an important point to note and stresses a need to put systems in place to measure and report publicly on organisations' efficacy in meeting stated social objectives and to ensure giving has a positive impact.

I’ll have what Norm's having

Both Halpern and Miller point to the power of social norms to shape our behaviour. When people give publicly to a cause then it in turn inspires others to give. By finding opportunities to celebrate and recognise peoples' giving, and more generally positive behaviour, then social norms can be created around this.


Debates around the role of the state will undoubtedly continue. In the meantime these insights reveal how giving is good, having both obvious and more subtle benefits as well as suggesting interventions that can promote giving and improve social outcomes. Importantly, understanding that giving can be as much about the giver as the cause highlights the need to ensure positive outcomes are measured and demonstrated.

Shared Value - Social Enterprise makes it to Harvard

Porter's Five Forces is probably the best known business school framework of them all. Legions of MBA students have learnt to recite it, quote it at every interview opportunity and arrange it prettily on a PowerPoint slide.

Michael Porter has now, however, come up with something much more interesting, the idea that companies should not only create shareholder value (i.e. profits) but also more wider Shared Value, i.e. value shared with a much wider set of stakeholders (including customers, communities, suppliers and so on).

Whilst this idea is, of course, not news to people who know about social enterprise (and Porter even mentions social entrepreneurs in his Harvard Business Review article), it's refreshing to see it is gaining momentum amongst mainstream pillars of the establishment.

Some quotes that particularly liked included:

• We need a more sophisticated form of capitalism, one imbued with a social purpose.
• Not all profit is equal. Profits involving a social purpose represent a higher form of capitalism.
• Because they are not locked into narrow traditional business thinking, social entrepreneurs are often well ahead of established corporations in discovering these opportunities.
• Shared value focuses companies on the right kind of profits—profits that create societal benefits rather than diminish them.

Social enterprise recruitment practices need honing

Our very own Tom has just written an article for the Guardian Social Enterprise Network on the need for better human capital management in social enterprises. He suggests that the dearth of at-scale social enterprises might be due to a scarcity of 'builders' and 'runners,' two styles of managers and leaders that focus on later organisation-building stages, such as building robust processes, managing complex risks, and involving multiple parties in complex decision-making. To find out more, check out Tom's article.

Vacancy at Fifteen

We've just learned of an exciting new opportunity at Fifteen. The Jamie Oliver Foundation team is looking for Progression Worker to provide a structured and well supported progression programme for Fifteen Apprentices and Graduates into the world of work and to help in all aspects of their future career aspirations.

For more details on the role please check out the link, where you can find a full Job Description. The closing date to send your CV is Friday 18th February.