Can too much similarity between donors crowd out charitable donations? an experimental investigation of the role of similarity in social influence on giving behavior

How is charitable giving influenced by other donors’ giving? Do people give more in the presence of donors who are similar to themselves? Most research suggests that individuals are positively influenced by similar others across a variety of behaviors. In the charitable giving context, if similar others donate, individuals are more likely to donate (or donate more) to the same cause. Yet, prior research has paid little attention to a potential non-linear relationship between similarity and charitable giving. Is there such thing as too much similarity? A between-subject laboratory experiment (N = 140) was designed to test a non-linear relationship between individuals’ similarity to other donors and their charitable giving. The study concludes that moderate similarity promotes more giving, yet too much similarity between donors may actually crowd out charitable giving.