Greater percentages of white and Latina women volunteer and make donations to charities than do white and Latino men, according to results of a non-partisan academic poll.
The poll, released by the Diane D. Blair Center of Southern Politics and Society at the University of Arkansas and the University of Arkansas Clinton School of Public Service, also showed that among African Americans the gender gap in these areas was nonexistent with men actually showing a slightly higher percentage of giving. The Clinton School’s Center on Community Philanthropy is using the results to examine possible trends related to giving and volunteerism across the country.
“The fact there is virtually no philanthropy gender gap among African Americans is important scholarly data which we will explore more deeply through our work at our center,” said Dr. Charlotte Williams, director of the Center on Community Philanthropy. “Contrasting this with current gender gaps in voting, campaign contributions, volunteering for campaigns and college enrollment is quite interesting.”
The Blair Center-Clinton School Poll, completed in mid-December, surveyed more than 3,600 people regarding issues related to politics, giving, regional identification, religion, racial discrimination, ideology and partisanship.
The poll, which uniquely included representative samples of traditionally under-polled groups such as African Americans, Latinos and southern whites, showed that higher percentages of whites followed by African Americans and Latinos volunteer and give regardless of gender.
“The greatest reason why people don’t volunteer and give relates to personal finances,” Williams said.
According to the data, African Americans, Latinos and whites also give in significantly higher percentages to local churches, local charities and relief efforts than they do to their college alma mater or to other colleges.
White women (46.3%) represented the highest demographic group giving to local churches. They were followed by African American men (45.6%), African American women (44.5%), white men (41.8%), Latina women (39.7%) and Latino men (39.4%).
The poll has a margin of error of 2.5 percentage points. It was administered by GfK, formerly Knowledge Networks, the leader in web-based survey research. For more information about the Blair Center-Clinton School partnership, please visit http://blaircenterclintonschoolpoll.uark.edu.
About the Partners:
The Diane D. Blair Center of Southern Politics and Society, part of the J. William Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences at the University of Arkansas, was established in 2001 by an act of the U.S. Congress. This research center was named in honor of Diane Divers Blair who taught in the Political Science Department at the University of Arkansas for 30 years. The Blair Center reflects her academic model and strives to approach the study of the American South from a variety of angles, attempting to reveal the undercurrents of politics, history and culture that have shaped the region.
The nation’s seventh presidential school, the University of Arkansas Clinton School of Public Service is the first school in the nation to offer a Master of Public Service (MPS) degree, giving students the knowledge and experience to further their careers in the areas of nonprofit, governmental, volunteer or private sector service. Additionally, the mission of the Clinton School’s Center on Community Philanthropy, directed by Charlotte Williams, is to promote issues and research into community-based philanthropy and its role in generating social, economic and political change.