In-group (vs out-group) unidentified (vs identified) beneficiaries in charitable giving

We set up a laboratory experiment to explore whether and how donations decisions to a charity are influenced by (i) the social distance between the donors and the beneficiaries assisted by the charity, and (ii) the identifiability of the beneficiary in the charity’s appeal. We find that donors give more, on average, to an unidentified than to an identified beneficiary. Donations are the same, on average, to in-group and to out-group beneficiaries; however, an in-group beneficiary is more likely to receive the entire endowment (€10) than an out-group beneficiary, whereas the latter are more likely than the former to receive a high donation, between €6 and €9. As we discuss, not all results are in line with previous empirical findings and with the hypothesis we made before conducting the experiment.