Survey finds philanthropic Irish generous with time and money

29 November 2010

The wealthy Irish are generous with their time as well as their money, according to a report published today by Barclays Wealth.

Entitled Global Giving: The Culture of Philanthropy, the report reveals key differences in the attitudes and behaviours that are driving high net worth individuals (HNWIs) to support charitable causes and, uniquely, it uses both money and time as indicators.

Drivers of Philanthropy

The report also looked at some of the drivers behind these giving behaviours, identifying unique cultural factors that shape a country's philanthropic style and motivate individuals to give to charity, according to Pat McCormack, Head of Barclays Wealth Ireland.

 “This report provides a strong sense of how the global community is really engaging with philanthropy - above and beyond simply donating money," he said. "This is particularly true at a local level, as Irish respondents are ranked first in the top five 'Volunteer' donors; those who are more inclined to devote their time to charity."

 “This is the first time we've seen both money and time used as indicators of an individual's giving behaviours in research, and it is especially interesting to see the diversity of this involvement in charities across global regions."

'Benefactors' and 'Volunteers'

 The report underlines that the concept of philanthropy is universal, with 44pc of respondents more likely to make charity a spending priority when they retire, and the amount of time allocated to charity set to increase by 194pc.

 The survey also identifies two distinct groups of givers using these two indicators; the 'Benefactors' who are the most generous with their financial spending, and the 'Volunteers' who are more inclined to devote their time to charity.

 Ireland came third after the US and South Africa among respondents who said 'philanthropy is one of their top three spending priorities', but came first among respondents who 'currently spend five hours a week or more on charity'.

 The four countries that ranked consistently in the top five of both indicators are Ireland, India, South Africa and the US. The report investigates the cultural nuances that drive these countries to engage in philanthropy in this way, and identifies the following factors:

A strong sense of community in Ireland - Personal connections to communities and causes are driving contributions to charity
The desire to combat omnipresent poverty in India - High net worth individuals have a strong sense that they must do as much as they can personally to combat society's problems
Bridging divides in society in South Africa - A national philosophy known as 'Ubuntu' drives altruism and a desire to support charitable causes
A sense of personal responsibility to help others in the US - An optimism about the creativity and innovation of individuals to solve problems and make changes in society.

The full report is available from the Barclays Wealth website.

Source: Business and Leadership