Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) / How is charitable giving influenced by other donors’ charitable giving? Do people give more in the presence of other donors who are similar to themselves? Most research suggests that individuals are positively influenced by others who are similar across a variety of behaviors. In the charitable giving contexts, people are more likely to donate (or donate more) to the same cause if others who are similar donate. Yet, prior research has paid little attention to potential non-linear effects of similarity on charitable giving. Is there a certain amount of similarity that is too much? My dissertation investigates this research question through two different methodological approaches, a systematic literature review and an experimental study. The findings suggest the curvilinear effects of similarity on charitable giving (i.e. self-other oversimilarity hypothesis); that is, individuals are more likely to donate (and donate more) in the presence of other generous donors who are moderately similar to themselves. Yet, individuals are less likely to donate (and donate) less in the presence of other generous donors who are in high similarity to themselves. In other words, too much similarity between donors may actually backfire in charitable giving contexts when others give generously. This dissertation consists of a brief overview of similarity (Chapter 1), a systematic literature review (Chapter 2), an experimental study (Chapter 3) and a research proposal (Chapter 4). Chapter 1 in this dissertation identifies the importance of similarity in social relationships. Chapter 2 investigates the effects of similarity on charitable giving and identifies the literature gap. Chapter 3 attempts to fill the gap via developing and testing self-other oversimilarity hypothesis. It further offers practical implications for nonprofit fundraising practices on how to apply similarity between donors to motivate more funding. In order to provide additional empirical evidence that may contribute to theory and practice, and to address certain limitations of the current experimental study, Chapter 4 proposes a new research project to further test self-other oversimilarity hypothesis in the presence of a stingy donor.

Tax credits are very popular and the support for them is very high, but do they actually succeed in having their intended effect? In this thesis I explore if the Swedish tax credit on charitable giving, which was in effect between the years 2012 and 2015, influenced charitable giving. The Swedish tax credit meant that you could deduct 25% of the amount donated if the organization was approved by the Swedish Tax Agency. This is done using a difference-in- difference method, comparing donations to the organizations which got approved by the Swedish Tax Agency and the organizations which did not. I find no evidence that the tax credit on charitable giving influenced charitable giving in Sweden, but because of the large confidence interval it is difficult to interpret the actual size of the tax credit. The tax credit could have an effect on charitable giving, but this thesis could not find it.

Objectives. We quantified controlled substance donations via permanent drug donation boxes over 2 years in a region with high prescription abuse, assessing medication characteristics, time between dispensing and donation, and weight of medications donated per capita. Methods. In partnership with Drug Enforcement Administration and local law enforcement, we analyzed permanent drug donation box collections in 8 Northeast Tennessee locations from June 2012 to April 2014. We recorded controlled substance dosage units along with the product dispensing date. Results. We collected 4841 pounds of pharmaceutical waste, 4.9% (238.5 pounds) of which were controlled substances, totaling 106 464 controlled substance doses. Analysis of dispensing dates for controlled substances indicated a median of 34 months lapsed from dispensing to donation (range = 1–484 months). The mean controlled substance donation rate was 1.39 pounds per 1000 residents. Communities with fewer than 10 000 residents had a statistically higher controlled substance donation rate (P = .002) compared with communities with 10 000 or more residents. Conclusions. Permanent drug donation boxes can be an effective mechanism to remove controlled substances from community settings. Rural and urban community residents should be provided convenient and timely access to drug disposal options.

This thesis examines the effects of overconsumption of clothing in the Global North on African textile industries through increased donations to secondhand stores. I begin by explaining how the growth of the fast fashion industry has increased the purchase and production of clothing over the recent decades. As an industry built on trends that quickly go in and out of style, fast fashion has resulted in massive amounts of unworn clothing. Consumers either throw away or donate their clothing, each of which result in either environmental or economic challenges. I explore post-consumer clothing’s donation route. Most donated clothing goes to secondhand stores such as Goodwill and The Salvation Army. However, with increasing amounts of donations going to these stores, they’ve reached a point in which they can no longer sell as quickly as they receive. Leftovers are sent overseas as a philanthropic action, but are met with concern from economists. Foreign aid to developing countries has been a topic of debate, critiqued as a lazy way of providing a short-term benefit with possibly detrimental long-term results. Introducing post-consumer clothing into African clothing markets raises the concern that they will replace local textile industries. I look at existing literature and fieldwork on this issue in order to examine the effects on textile industries in several countries. While the effects vary in differing countries and there are several other variables involved, such as market and political conditions, collective research shows that used-clothing donations account for 40% of the decline in apparel and textile production in an average African country.

Cette thèse est consacrée à la question du don dans le milieu humanitaire, sous l'angle des donateurs particuliers rarement questionnés à ce sujet. Les ONG ont de plus en plus de visibilité et utilisent, entre autre, les émotions pour inciter aux dons. Cependant puisque le sujet du don est étudié (comme par l'anthropologue Marcel Mauss, principalement), il convient de s'appuyer sur les analyses correspondant à cette thématique, tout en s'intéressant à une ONG française de Solidarité Internationale (Aide et Action) dont le principal domaine d'intervention est l'éducation et qui a mis en place le parrainage. L'organisation intervient dans différents pays pour venir en aide à des personnes vulnérables, notamment des enfants, ce via différentes actions basées sur le développement à long terme. Dans ce travail, il s'agit surtout de comprendre pourquoi les donateurs particuliers de cette ONG, à la fois les donateurs hebdomadaires ou trimestriels et ceux dénommés «parrains», donnent de l'argent. Le terrain s'est effectué par le biais de deux questionnaires, un pour chaque type de donateur, où furent posées des questions concernant, particulièrement, la manière dont l'ONG communique auprès des donateurs, les incitant par-là à poursuivre leur investissement. Par la suite, des entretiens ont permis de renforcer les données apportées par les questionnaires. / This thesis is devoted to the issue of donation in the humanitarian sector, from the perspective of individual donors who are rarely questioned about this subject. NGOs are increasingly present in the public eye and use, among other strategies, emotions to incite people to donate. However, since the theme of the gift has been studied (for example, by the anthropologist Marcel Mauss, mainly), we should be based on the analysis related to this theme and also focus on a French NGO ("Aide et Action") whose main sphere of action relates to education and has established the sponsorship. The organization operates in different countries in order to help vulnerable people, including children, through various actions based on long-term development. In this work, it is mainly to understand why do individual donors of this NGO, both weekly and quarterly and those referred to as "sponsors", give money. The fieldwork has been carried out through two questionnaires, one for each type of donors, in which questions were asked, in particular, about how the NGO communicates with donors, prompting thereby to continue their investment. Subsequently, interviews have strengthened data provided by the questionnaires.

A research report submitted to the Faculty of Commerce, Law and Management in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Commerce / The debt reduction provisions contained in s 19 and para 12A of the Eighth Schedule to the Income Tax Act 58 of 1962 seek to reverse the tax benefits claimed or enjoyed by debtors in relation to debt which has been forgiven, wholly or in part. In most cases, the application of these provisions should not lead to any difficulty. Nevertheless, some scenarios are not adequately provided for by the legislation, including debt reduction in favour of debtors carrying on mining operations, as well as partial debt reductions. Furthermore, the applicability of some of the exemptions to these provisions is unclear. Despite recent amendments to these provisions, which will apply to years of assessment commencing on or after 1 January 2013, the legislature has not addressed these issues. Key words: allowance assets; base cost; capital assets; capital gains tax; debt forgiveness; debt reduction; debt waiver; deemed donation; donation; donations tax; exemption; group of companies; operating expenditure; mining capital expenditure; tracing of expenditure; trading stock.

Este trabalho visa contribuir para a compreensão dos incentivos que permeiam os agentes envolvidos no financiamento de campanhas eleitorais. Por meio de evidências empíricas reunidas a partir do contexto do financiamento de campanhas brasileiras, a compra de ações de empresas de capital aberto por parte do governo é analisada como possível mecanismo de compensação do financiamento de campanhas eleitorais. A análise é feita comparando a participação do governo no capital de sociedades anônimas doadoras e não doadoras de recursos para financiamento de campanhas usando o método de Diferenças em Diferenças. Por meio dessa metodologia, identificou-se, particularmente na eleição de 2010, um efeito positivo do financiamento eleitoral sobre o investimento do governo em ações de empresas financiadoras. / This study aims to contribute to the literature by investigating the incentives that pervade agents involved in electoral campaign funding. By means of empirical evidence gathered from the Brazilian electoral financing context, government investment in stocks is analyzed as a possible compensation mechanism for electoral campaign financing. The study investigates government investments in stocks comparing corporations that have supported electoral campaigns and those that have not, by applying the Differences-in-Differences method. By this method, a positive effect of electoral financing on government investment in companies stocks was identified in the 2010 electoral cycle. However, the empirical tests suggest no effect in 2002 and 2006 elections.

O crowdfunding (financiamento coletivo) é uma nova espécie contratual em que, por meio da internet, pessoas buscam angariar valores valendo-se de diversas contribuições individuais, normalmente de pequenos valores. No presente estudo, buscou-se explicar, primeiramente, os principais fundamentos e características do crowdfunding, para, a seguir, traçar as linhas gerais das quatro espécies de financiamento coletivo hoje conhecidas (doações, recompensas, participação societária e empréstimos). Destas espécies, representaram o objeto de estudo do presente trabalho somente o crowdfunding baseado em doações e o baseado em recompensas. Na segunda parte, a responsabilidade civil dos financiadores, dos financiados e dos intermediários foi detidamente abordada. Por fim, as tentativas de legislação sobre o tema no Brasil, bem como algumas experiências estrangeiras, foram tratadas, bem como foi realizada uma análise sobre a pertinência e a necessidade de uma legislação específica sobre o tema, concluindo no sentido de que os Projetos de Lei criados no Brasil foram inadequados e não merecem ser aprovados. / Crowdfunding is a new kind of contract that people use to raise money, through the internet, by collecting a variety of small contributions, usually small amounts. The present study sought to explain, first, the main basis and characteristics of crowdfunding, and then determine the main objectives of the four crowdfunding modalities now known (donations, rewards, equity and debts). Of the modalities listed, represented the labor of this study only the types based in donations and based in rewards. In the second part, the civil liability of financers, financed and intermediaries at crowdfunding relations was carefully investigated. Finally, attempts of legislation on this issue in Brazil, as well as some foreign experiences, was handled. In the end, an analysis was done of the relevance and the need of specific legislation on this matter, concluding that the Law Projects created in Brazil were inadequate and do not deserve to be approved.

Este artigo objetiva identificar os efeitos da desigualdade econômica no exercício de direitos políticos da cidadania. Este é um estudo observacional que articula dois conjuntos de literatura que parecem evoluir seus debates em espaços desconectados: a teoria da cidadania, a partir da dimensão de cidadania como titularidade de direitos políticos, e o estudo do financiamento eleitoral, especialmente a partir de sua dimensão de doações privadas. São identificados e organizados os efeitos da variável econômica no sistema político, partidário e eleitoral, associando-os aos efeitos sobre o nível individual dos direitos cidadãos. A partir da definição basilar de direitos políticos como direitos de votar e ser votado, sintetizam-se os efeitos em, respectivamente: desproporcionalidade na representação de interesses e distorção na competição dos candidatos. Doações privadas vultosas aparecem como mecanismos com duplo efeito ao distorcerem ambos os direitos. O contexto brasileiro é ilustrado a partir de dados de financiamento eleitoral de 2014, os quais corroboram os argumentos delineados na literatura. A legislação brasileira alterada em 2015 inclui proibição de doações empresariais e limites aos gastos eleitorais, e parece caminhar no sentido de controlar distorções identificadas. Contudo, a avaliação dos efeitos da mudança carece de tempo e de ocorrência de pleito sob as novas regras. / This study aims to identity the effects of economic inequality in the exercise of political rights of citizenship. This is an observational study that articulates twos sets of literature which seem to evolve their debates on disconnected spaces: the theory of citizenship, from the dimension of citizenship as rights, and the study of electoral finance, specifically from its dimension of private donations. We identity and organize the effects of the economic variable on the political, party, and electoral system, in order to associate them with the effects on the individual level of citizen entitlements. From the definition of political rights as the right to vote and be voted, the effects are synthetized in, respectively: disproportionate representation of interests and distortion of candidate competition. Bulky sums of private donations stand out for their potential double effect, considering they distort both rights. The Brazilian context is illustrated from legislation and data of 2014 electoral finance, which corroborates the arguments previously identified through the literature. The Brazilian legislation, that has been altered in 2015, now incorporates the prohibition on corporate donations and limits on spending and donations, and for that matter, it seems to walk in the direction of controlling such distortions. However, an evaluation of the effects of this change still needs time and the occurrence of elections by this law.

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