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  • February 2020
  • Article
  • Management Science

Using Charity Performance Metrics as an Excuse Not to Give

By: Christine L. Exley
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Abstract

There is an increasing pressure to give more wisely and effectively. There is, relatedly, an increasing focus on charity performance metrics. Via a series of experiments, this paper provides a caution to such a focus. While information on charity performance metrics may facilitate more effective giving, it may also facilitate the development of excuses not to give. Managers of nonprofit organizations should carefully assess this tension when determining if and how to provide information on their performance metrics.

Keywords

Charitable Giving; Prosocial Behavior; Altruism; Excuses; Self-serving Biases; Philanthropy and Charitable Giving; Performance; Measurement and Metrics; Behavior

Citation

Exley, Christine L. "Using Charity Performance Metrics as an Excuse Not to Give." Management Science 66, no. 2 (February 2020): 553–563.
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About The Author

Christine L. Exley

Negotiation, Organizations & Markets
→More Publications

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    Beliefs about Gender Differences in Social Preferences

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More from the Author
  • Beliefs about Gender Differences in Social Preferences By: Christine L Exley, Oliver P. Hauser, Molly Moore and John-Henry Pezzuto
  • Negotiating for Equal Pay: The U.S. Women’s National Soccer Team (A) and (B) By: John Beshears and Christine Exley
  • The Role of Beliefs in Driving Gender Discrimination By: Katherine B. Coffman, Christine L. Exley and Muriel Niederle
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