people experienced from getting was quick to fade with repetition. However, the joy of giving had staying power and was less likely to fade over time.
Several studies confirm that giving is associated with long‐lasting good feelings. For example, people who were asked to regularly and frequently do small kind acts for others felt happier up to two months later. There are similar effects of giving money: one study found that people who spent more of their employment bonus on others felt happier up to two months later, while another found that participants who donated more to charity at one time were happier up to nine years later.
The Joy of Giving Runs Deep
Giving time and money not only affects givers' happiness, it runs more deeply into fulfilling feelings of meaning and purpose in life. In fact, giving increases people's perceptions of a life well lived with meaning and purpose (i.e., eudaimonic well‐being) more than their simple feelings of happiness (i.e., hedonic well‐being).
The psychological benefits of giving extend into mental health symptoms; givers experience fewer symptoms of depression and anxiety, which, if untreated, could become full blown psychological disorders.
Fundraisers need not worry that they might erase these benefits of giving by sharing the news with potential donors. Even when people are aware of the potential happiness effects of giving, this does not diminish the psychological rewards. Indeed, one study found that people gave more when they learned of the potential happiness‐building effects of giving.
Simply recalling, observing, or counting one's own kind acts also increases happiness as much as actually doing them. Even more incredible is that these happiness boosts seem to be noticeable by outside observers. The joy of giving is written on our faces.
The Paradox of Generosity
There is strong scientific support for these findings. And yet, when people are asked to guess which one will make them happier, spending money on themselves versus spending it on others, they think they will be happier when spending on themselves. This may help to explain the increasing prevalence of materialistic goals.
Giving money can also make people feel richer, despite having less money because they just gave some away. Giving time to others can lead to feelings of “time affluence,” the subjective feeling of having a lot of free time available. Amazingly, people feel like their schedules are less rushed, even though objectively they have less time because they just gave some away. The paradox of generosity is that people feel happier, richer, and healthier after giving their money and time to others (Smith and Davidson 2014). Having money in itself does not make people happier, but the way people spend it can affect their happiness (Dunn and Norton 2014).
Social Outcomes
Giving is contagious: People's giving behavior spreads into their closest relationships, and into their broader social networks.
Not only is giving socially learned and replicated, it can also enrich people's reputations and social relationships. One study found that participants who gave more money to charity were more likely to be selected to represent their group as leaders, and also received more money from group members. This demonstrates how giving to charity can promote a positive reputation for givers. Kind people are likeable, and others want to be around them. Studies have found that preteens who behave more kindly are more popular with their peers. For example, in one study, preteens who performed three kind acts (versus visited three new places) each week became more popular over time.
Similar results have been found in older adults. In one study, older adults who volunteered increased in their social connections after several months, while control group participants experienced a decline. Volunteers also increased 17 percent in feelings of being socially supported, while control group participants declined 25 percent in perceived social support. Givers also report less loneliness and more feelings of social connection.
People with higher giving‐related traits like empathy both provide and receive more social support, which suggests a balanced give‐and‐take in their relationships. They also try harder to maintain their relationships and report more love and affection for those they interact with. Overall, people with higher giving‐related traits and behaviors have more positive and satisfying relationships.
Is generosity good for romance? Research finds that being generous can help to encourage new romances. For example, kindness is the top trait that both men and women are looking for in a romantic relationship, and generous people are seen as more desirable romantic partners. Our research has found that generous people are rated as more physically attractive: the good‐looking giver effect. And, a large national study found that more generous single people were more likely to be in a relationship the following year.
Physical Outcomes
There are many physical health implications of giving time and money, ranging from immediate physiological processes to healthy lifestyle behaviors to healthcare usage to longevity (see Bekkers, Konrath, and Smith 2016, for a review).
Brain Responses
When donating money, the pleasure and reward centers of the brain are activated as much as when receiving money. Giving support to loved ones also activates neural reward centers, while simultaneously lowering neural fear and stress areas. And when directly compared, research finds that giving to loved ones has more neural benefits than donating to charity.
Stress Hormones
Daily stressors like arguments or work deadlines can increase cortisol, a stress hormone that is toxic for health and predicts early mortality, especially cardiovascular‐related. Volunteering buffers people from cortisol response to stressors – on days that people volunteer, their cortisol remains low, even in the presence of stressors. People with giving‐related traits like empathy also have lower stress hormones during stressful tasks, and small actions (e.g., shifting one's focus to others, writing an affectionate letter) have similar effects.
Gene Regulation and Cellular Aging
Scientists have examined changes in people's genetic expressions after doing kind acts (versus control activities) for one month. Such kind behaviors cause inflammation‐related genes to be down‐regulated. Similar results are found in volunteers, in addition to the up‐regulation of antiviral genes.
Strength and Energy
Giving can also make people physically stronger, at least temporarily. Researchers asked people to hold a 5‐pound weight with their arms stretched horizontally for as long as they could. They were then given a $1 payment and half of them were asked to donate it to UNICEF (100 percent agreed), while the other half just kept it. People who donated the money held the 5‐pound weight longer than those who didn't. Other research confirms that giving time may also have similar effects. Older adults who volunteered for 4–8 months (compared to controls) reported increased strength and energy, better grip strength, and faster walking and stair climbing speeds.
Pain Responses
Giving can also reduce physiological responses to pain. One study found that people who gave to charity tolerated higher levels of pain compared to those who kept money for themselves. Givers also show less activation in pain‐related areas of their brain compared to nongivers. Volunteering and other forms of helping can even help to reduce pain among chronic pain patients.
Cardiovascular Risk
Much research examines giving and cardiovascular risk factors. It finds that volunteering, giving money, and giving support to loved ones are associated with lower blood pressure, lower blood glucose, and fewer inflammatory markers.
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