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Donating to charity is a phenomenon found in cultures and religions worldwide. Studies have examined how to attract donors, get them to engage, and eventually make a donation. But what happens after? The post-donation part of the process is less explored and often lacking in transparency toward the donor; where did the donation go, and how can the donors make sure it reaches the intended beneficiaries? This study investigated how post-donation transparency can enhance the user experience of donating money by identifying the donor’s needs and desires post-donation and fulfilling them in a design proposal. The Double Diamond model of design and its four phases were chosen to achieve this. In the first two phases, Discover and Define, the problem space was explored and defined through a literature study and initial interviews. The interview data was analyzed through the Affinity Diagram method resulting in two ”How might we”-questions. The needs and desires of users were also identified at this stage. A brainstorming session based on the ”How might we”-questions initiated the following, and last phases Develop and Deliver. Prototypes of different levels of fidelity were then created and tested on both users and experts before finally landing in a design proposal. Results showed that the elements added for creating post-donation transparency were appreciated by users and experts alike. A high score from a UMUX-LITE usability test suggested that the prototype was usable, elements in the prototype were pointed out for achieving transparency, and all participants expressed positive feelings after using the prototype. Therefore, the prototype was concluded to have achieved post-donation transparency within the frames of this study. Further studies are recommended as the final prototype was never tested on users. The hope is that more tests would give a better understanding of how user needs and desires could be achieved post-donation. / Att donera till välgörenhet är ett fenomen som hittas i kulturer och religioner över hela världen. Studier har undersökt hur man kan rekrytera donatorer, få dem att engagera sig och så småningom göra en donation. Men vad händer sen? Tiden efter donation är mindre utforskad och saknar ofta transparens gentemotgivaren; vart tog donationen vägen och hur kan givarna ta reda på om pengarna når fram? Denna studie har undersökt hur transparens i processen efter genomförd donation kan förbättra användarupplevelsen av att donera pengar genom att identifiera givares behov och önskemål och uppfylla dem i ett designförslag. Metoden Double Diamond med dess fyra faser valdes för att uppnå detta. I de två första faserna Discover och Define utforskades och definierades problemområdet genom en litteraturstudie och intervjuer. Intervjudatan analyserades med Affinity Diagram-metoden vilket slutligen landade i två ”How might we”-frågor. Användarnas behov och önskemål identifierades också i det här stadiet. En brainstorming-session baserad på ”How might we”-frågorna initierade de två sista faserna Develop och Deliver. Prototyper med olika detaljnivå skapades sedan och testades på både användare och experter innan ett designförslag slutligen kunde tas fram. Resultaten visade att de element som adderats för att skapa transparens efter donation uppskattades av både användare och experter. En hög poäng från ett UMUX-LITE användbarhetstest antydde att prototypen var användbar, element i prototypen pekades ut för att inge en känsla av transparens och alla deltagare uttryckte positiva känslor efter att ha använt prototypen. Därför ansågs prototypen att ha uppnått transparens efter genomförd donation inom ramarna för denna studie. Ytterligare studier bör genomföras då den slutliga prototypen aldrig testades på användare. Förhoppningarna är att fler tester skulle ge en bättre förståelse för hur användarnas behov och önskemål skulle kunna förverkligas i processen efter en genomförd donation.

In today's business environment, organizations are expected to engage in Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), which involves balancing their economic success with positive social and environmental impact. Collaborating with charitable organizations can be a way for companies to engage in socially responsible activities and given the increasing focus on CSR, there is a potential for an enhanced interaction between companies and charitable organizations. This study aims to provide knowledge for charitable organizations on how companies act in relation to charitable engagement and thus, help charities in the process of adapting their approach to establish and maintain relationships with companies. Specifically, it investigates how companies value external CSR initiatives, how they motivate and perceive their relationships with charitable organizations, and identifies typical traits of companies engaged in charitable work as a part of their CSR initiatives. The study was conducted using a qualitative approach, where the data was collected through an examination of 40 sustainability reports and nine semi-structured interviews with representatives from different companies. The findings reveal that companies value various aspects of external CSR initiatives, with six distinct themes identified: quality of life, environment, health, healthcare, education, and crises. Among these themes, quality of life is the most valued. Companies also place importance in aligning charitable engagement with their core business, although engagement related to crises is viewed differently and less connected to the core business. Companies engage in charitable activities due to societal expectations, fostering company pride, and enhancing brand perception. The nature of relationships established with charitable organizations varies among companies, with some prioritizing long-term strategic partnerships, others pure monetary donations, and some aligning their charitable work with product and marketing communication. Notably, some companies express a negative attitude towards the latter approach. During times of crisis, companies tend to lean towards pure donations, while larger companies in general show more openness to strategic collaborations with charities. The research findings can provide valuable insights for charitable organizations, enabling them to adapt their approaches to establishing and maintaining relationships with companies effectively. / I dagens affärsmiljö förväntas organisationer engagera sig i Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), vilket innebär att balansera sin ekonomiska framgång med positiva soicala och miljömässiga effekter. Att samarbeta med välgörenhetsorganisationer kan vara ett sätt för företag att ta sitt sociala ansvar ochmed tanke på det ökande fokuset på CSR finns det potential för ökad interaktion mellan företag och välgörenhetsorganisationer. Denna studie syftar till att tillhandahålla värdefull kunskap för välgörenhetsorganisationer om företags beteenden i relation till välgörenhetsengagemang och på så sätt hjälpa välgörenhetsorganisationer i processen att etablera och upprätthålla relationer med företag. Mer specifikt undersöker studien hur företag värderar externa CSR-initiativ, hur de motiverar och uppfattar sina relationer med välgörenhetsorganisationer, samt identifierar typiska egenskaper hos företag som engagerar sig i välgörenhetsarbete som en del av sina CSR-initiativ. Studien genomfördes med en kvalitativ metod, där data samlades in genom granskning av 40 hållbarhetsrapporter och nio semistrukturerade intervjuer med representanter från olika företag. Resultaten visar att företag värderar olika aspekter av externa CSR-initiativ, där sex olika teman har identifierats: levnadsstandard, miljö, hälsa, sjukvård, utbildning och kriser. Bland dessa teman är levnadsstandard det högst värderade. Företag lägger även vikt vid att koppla samman välgörenhetsengagemang med sin kärnverksamhet, även om engagemang relaterat till kriser betraktas annorlunda och är i mindre utsträckning kopplat till kärnverksamheten. Företag engagerar sig i välgörenhetsaktiviteter på grund av samhällets förväntningar, för att skapa en stolthet på företaget och för att förbättra varumärkesuppfattningen. De relationer som etableras med ideella organisationer varierar mellan företag, där vissa prioriterar långsiktiga strategiska partnerskap, andra renodlade monetära donationer och vissa anpassar sitt välgörenhetsarbete med produkt- och marknadskommunikation. Noterbart är att vissa företag uttrycker en negativ inställning till det sistnämnda tillvägagångssättet. Vid kriser tenderar företag att fokusera på rena donationer, medan större företag generellt visar större öppenhet för strategiska samarbeten med välgörenhets- organisationer. Forskningsresultaten kan ge värdefulla insikter för ideella organisationer och hjälpa dem att anpassa sina tillvägagångssätt för att etablera och upprätthålla relationer med företag på ett effektivt sätt.

Two essays comprise this doctoral dissertation on consumers and their charitable donations. The overall objective is to investigate the role of psychological distance in charitable donations, with each essay dealing with a different moderator of this relationship. In the first essay, I study the interactive effect of social distance and processing mode (affect vs. cognition). Specifically, people tend to donate more if they use their emotions rather than cognition as diagnostic inputs for decision making, especially when donor and recipient are separated by greater social distance. This may be because affect-driven and cognition-driven donors are influenced by different goals. Affect-driven donors are mainly motivated by a consummatory goal of increasing their “warm glow” utility whereas cognition-driven donors are mainly motivated by an instrumental goal of increasing “public goods” utility (i.e., making a contribution that may benefit the donor as well). While both consummatory and instrumental goals are relevant at closer social distance, only the consummatory goal is at work at greater social distance, which leads to a social distance by processing mode interaction. The hypothesized effect is tested in a series of three experiments that use different contexts and dependent measures (e.g., donation of money vs. time). iv In the second essay, I turn to the joint effect of psychological distance and dispositional empathy on charitable donation. Empathy or “Einfühlung” is defined as feeling one‟s way into the situation of another. While the literature suggests that empathy generally increases various forms of prosocial behavior including donations, I argue that this effect is contingent upon the psychological distance between donor and recipient. The role of empathy is especially pronounced when the recipient is perceived to be psychologically closer to the donor. This is because closer psychological distance leads to greater identification by the donor with the recipient, which in turn leads to greater donation. I demonstrated support for the hypothesized interaction between dispositional empathy and psychological distance in three experiments, each addressing a different type of psychological distance. I conclude this dissertation with a discussion of the theoretical contribution and managerial importance of the findings. Managers of not-for-profits are confronted with a multitude of challenges in increasing donations while optimizing their resources. By pointing out the processes that underlie individual donors‟ decisions on charitable donations, this dissertation addresses a long-felt but rarely addressed lacuna in the literature.

The author uses a thematic approach to argue that Bologna was a trensetter in approaches and institutions aimed at helping the poor between roughly 1450-1700.

Francis Bacon (1561-1626) is recognized as a founder of the modern scientific project and a forerunner of the modern era of political thought. He advocated the development of an active science that would enable human beings to control nature in order to relieve man's estate. To accomplish this, Bacon argues that we must reconstruct all arts and sciences upon a more solid foundation. In reconstructing the arts and sciences, Bacon subtly changes the meaning of foundational religious, political, and scientific notions in order to better suit his project of progress. As the inheritors of his vision, turning to Bacon helps recover foundational considerations that have been forgotten as a result of his success. This dissertation approaches Bacon's thought through an analysis of his New Atlantis, a fable that envisions the completion of his project. I also turn to his other political, scientific, and religious works as appropriate to supply what is omitted in the fable. I find that although his revision of religious, scientific, and political foundations is conducted subtly they are nevertheless revolutionary, and essential for preparing the various outlooks that characterize the modern world.

<p>This work is a local study of charity in seventeenth-century Marseilles. Civic councillors, inspired by the <em>dévot</em> movement, were the chief agents of charitable poor relief. Responding to external political pressures from the Bourbon monarchy and religious inspiration from within the community, charity became a facet of local political authority and a vehicle of social moral reform. The collective purpose of the newly emerging specialized asylums was to mould orderly and spiritually orthodox members of society. In light of the city’s ongoing hopes for civic autonomy and its unwavering commitment to Catholicism, the desire for citizen-virtue crystallizes as a struggle for distinctly <em>Marseillais</em> identity. My study emphasizes not the ‘<em>enfermement</em>’ but the concept of ‘charity’ as the central concept in treatment of the poor. The asylums were ‘rehabilitative’ rather than purely punitive. In showing charity as a mechanism of social reform – tailored to each group’s material, moral and spiritual lowliness and to the threat they allegedly posed – the study implicitly unveils the exclusionary aspects of the social mosaic.</p> / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

As the number of marathons offered in the United States continues to increase, so does the number of marathon participants, including first time marathon runners. The purpose of this study was to examine race motivators for newbie marathoners and their likelihood of adherence to the sport of marathoning. A total of 906 first time marathon participants, who ran their debut race within the past year, were included in this study. Participants were chosen on the basis of their willingness to complete an online survey. The survey consisted of demographic questions and the Motivation of Marathoners Scales (MOMS) (Masters et al., 1993). Through a frequency analysis of the MOMS, mean values revealed participants utilized primarily personal goal achievement, self-esteem, and health orientation as reasons for training for and running a marathon. In terms of gender comparisons and the MOMS, males had higher means for personal goal achievement and competition; females had higher means in the remaining seven categories. Females and males also had significant differences in response means on seven of the MOMS subscales to run a marathon. A significant difference was also found between charity and non charity runners with the MOMS for weight concern. Significance was found in the intended time frame to run another marathon for females and males. A frequency count showed the top three reasons to run another marathon were to lower my finish time (82.9%), to include the race as part of a vacation weekend (73.8%), and to improve upon my training (62.9%). Significance was found between females and males in their chosen reasons for running another marathon. Gender differences were significant for to lower my finish time, attempt a different course, to raise money for charity, to run with family or friends, to include the race as part of a vacation weekend, and to improve upon my training. Significance was also found between charity and non charity runners and running another marathon to stay in shape, to have fun, to attempt a different course, as part of a vacation weekend, and to improve upon training. Based upon input from the `other' category, 21 additional categories were created for reasons to run another marathon. / Kinesiology

no / A distinction between the deserving and undeserving has been in some respects a distinguishing, and in many others, divisive, feature of the social work profession. The apparent distinction has traditionally been drawn on the basis of ethical and moral appraisals of virtue and vice. This tradition has a much longer pedigree dating from antiquity in which considerations of personal desert were crucial, indeed decisive, in redistributive and retributive justice (Zaitchik 1977). Over the passage of time, moral authority has yielded more and more power to knowledge (Foucault, 1973). Rationality has superseded dogmatism, and the assessment of those eligible for welfare has been well honed. Although income and means tests form the official basis for distributing welfare, whether or not moral desert has been abandoned remains in question. However, how might desert be managed, if it does indeed continue to exert a powerful, albeit covert, influence on claims to state-provided or sponsored welfare? One possible answer to this question follows, first by noting the obvious, though, unappreciated importance of, desert, followed by a discussion of its integral relation to justice, and finally outlining how social work could use it as a normative force. / The full text may be made available on permission from the publisher.

Thesis advisor: Mary Jo Iozzio / The Recognition of people with Disabilities (PWD) in Nigeria, Africa, and the world at large is imperative. As the world’s largest minority, and a marginalized group, social justice advocacy and recognition of their inherent dignity is necessary. African palaver’s claim of recognition and inclusion of all in the community and the need for a re-evaluation of African palaver as an ethics of Recognition is examined for its purported claims. I consider recognition as a social justice movement that advocates for the restoration of the dignity of PWD, a people whom the general population in Africa, and particularly in Nigeria, discriminate against and deny their inalienable rights. Moreso, the patriarchal past and present of African culture illustrates that women suffer the most from marginalization, especially women with disability. With its biblical roots, Catholic social teaching empowers the Church in Africa and beyond toward recognition of the inherent dignity of PWD as the Imago Dei. This dignity coheres with Jesus's recognition and inclusion of PWD in the New Testament; the Old Testament generally considered disability as a punishment for some wrongdoing by an individual, a group, or the community. Since the virtues are essential in advocacy for the recognition of PWD, the theological and the cardinal virtues, especially justice, promote fairness, inclusion, and involvement in all facets of the community. The virtues empower the agent into acts of love and justice, and the parable of the Good Samaritan typifies vulnerable love and justice in an instructive way for us. Therefore, while African Palaver is instrumental in African communalism as it uses the spoken word to proffer values in the community, the Palaver leads to recognition, inclusion, integration, and participation of people in the community for the common good. It is imperative to include PWD and especially the missing voices of women on the margins. Recognition of PWD is a justice issue in urgent need of address. Finally, the offer of friendship to PWD and other vulnerable populations would help eradicate the marginalization that PWD experience in our society and this study concludes with a suggestion that the Church in Africa should adopt Palaver Ethics as an ethics of recognition in order to guarantee authentic social justice for PWD. / Thesis (STD) — Boston College, 2024. / Submitted to: Boston College. School of Theology and Ministry. / Discipline: Sacred Theology.