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    The Changing Role of Women in American Society
    (2020-01-01) Women's Philanthropy Institute
    The Women's Philanthropy Institute examines the key predictors of women's philanthropy.
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    Women and Philanthropy: A Literature Review (2009)
    (2009) Mesch, Debra
    Over the past 30 years, women have emerged on the philanthropic landscape as a visible and bold presence. They are changing the face of philanthropy and are transforming society around the world. Today’s reality is that women, strengthened by increasing economic power and education, are as likely as men to be philanthropists. Yet, the body of research literature on women’s philanthropic giving is lagging behind the reality of what is happening in practice around the world. Recently, however, interest in understanding how and why women give has gotten underway—particularly over the past decade--prompting researchers to examine gender issues in philanthropy from new angles. These research findings suggest that a more proactive, strategic engagement of women in philanthropy will unleash new human and financial resources for the public good.
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    Women and Philanthropy: A Literature Review (2012)
    (2012) Mesch, Debra; Pactor, Andrea
    An accumulating body of demographic data and research suggests that women’s philanthropy is one of the key developments in philanthropy globally, one which has the potential to transform how philanthropy is practiced in the future. A 2006 article in The Economist stated that, “women are now the most powerful engine of global growth.” According to a Barclay’s study of 2,000 millionaires around the globe (2010), “men are more active philanthropists in developed countries, but in emerging countries, women take the lead.” Women are raising their voices, changing the face of philanthropy, and transforming how philanthropy is practiced around the world.
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    Women’s Philanthropy on Campus: Releasing the Energy of Women Donors and Embracing the Winds of Change
    (2009-12) Women's Philanthropy Institute
    This handbook is designed to help college and university development leadership and staff think strategically about engaging all alumni and prospective donors in the mission of the institution. Over the last 30 years higher education institutions have experienced significant demographic changes with women becoming increasingly more visible in all facets of campus life.
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    Women’s Giving Circles: Reflections from the Founders
    (2009-08) Shaw-Hardy, Sondra
    This narrative shares the stories of the women founders of giving circles. The majority of the first giving circles were created by women for women members. Though giving circles are now popular among both genders, women have contributed more significantly to the inception and the growth of the giving circle movement.
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    Who Decides in Giving to Education? A Study of Charitable Giving by Married Couples
    (7/26/2007) Rooney, Patrick; Mesch, Debra; Brown, Eleanor
    Using data from the Center on Philanthropy Panel Study and the Panel Study on Income Dynamics, we analyzed whether husbands or wives were more likely to determine whether and how much money to donate to educational institutions. Among donor households, we are able to examine what socio-economic-demographic factors explain differences in whether men or women are more likely to decide to give to educational institutions. We also compare the “who decides” question for education to who decides about giving overall. We find that after controlling for other factors in multiple regression analyses, the educational attainment of both spouses is positively associated with increased giving to education, as is the number of children living at home, family income, and wealth (excluding home values). The age of the husband does not matter but there is a positive association with the age of the wife and amounts given to education. Men have little or no influence on the decision to give to education at all or the amounts donated to education. Conversely, women decision-makers are more likely to have a positive effect on both the likelihood of giving to education and the amounts given to education.
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    Determinants of Compensation: A Study of Pay, Performance, and Gender Differences for Fundraising Professionals
    (4/8/2008) Mesch, Debra; Rooney, Patrick
    The purpose of our study is to address the following research questions: (1) What are the significant determinants of compensation for individuals who are employed as fundraising professionals in nonprofits? More specifically, does performance have a significant effect on compensation for these professionals? (2) What are the key determinants of bonus and salary for these individuals? (3) Is there a gender-pay gap for individuals who are in the role of fundraisers for nonprofits?
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    Does Jewish Philanthropy Differ by Sex and Type of Giving?
    (2010) Mesch, Debra; Ottoni-Wilhelm, Mark; Moore, Zach
    Little has been written on the role of gender in Jewish philanthropy, and there is even less empirical research on gender differences between Jewish men and women, or between Jews and non-Jews by gender. This study examines Jewish philanthropy by type of giving and gender. Specifically, we examine the differing amounts given to charity (both religious and secular) across eight groups, controlling for other factors that may affect philanthropic giving. These included four groups of married couples: those consisting of two Jewish spouses, of a Jewish man and a non-Jewish woman, of a non-Jewish man and a Jewish woman, and of two non-Jewish spouses; and four groups of singles: Jewish men, Jewish women, non-Jewish men and non-Jewish women. Using three waves of data from the Panel Study of Income Dynamics (PSID), we used regression methods to examine the differences among the groups. Results indicated that the probability of giving and the amount given among Jewish women married to non-Jewish men are significantly less than among all other groups.
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    The Effects of Race, Gender, and Marital Status on Giving and Volunteering in Indiana
    (2006-12) Mesch, Debra; Rooney, Patrick; Steinberg, Kathryn; Denton, Brian
    The purpose of this study is to examine the effects of race, gender, and marital status on giving and volunteering behavior. A second purpose is to examine these effects across different survey methodologies. Using data from Indiana households, a multimethod, multigroup research design was used to compare giving and volunteering across eight different survey methodologies. Results indicate important differences in philanthropic behaviors by gender, race, marital status, and survey methodology—even when controlling for differences in income, age, and educational attainment. These results highlight the importance of looking specifically at human and social capital variables, and survey methodology, when making assumptions about and interpreting the measurement of philanthropic behavior.
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    Global Dynamics of Gender and Philanthropy in Membership Associations: A Study of Charitable Giving by Lions Clubs International Members
    (2014) Mesch, Debra; Kou, Xiaonan; Hayat, Amir Daniel; Osili, Una
    This study investigates how women influence charitable giving in a large, international voluntary service organization—Lions Clubs International (LCI). Data were collected from a survey of Lions clubs members in 14 countries to assess the impact of both micro- and macro-level factors on charitable giving. Probit and Tobit models are used to determine the probability of giving as well as the amount of money donated to the Lions Clubs International Foundation. Results indicate that belonging to a club where at least half of the members are female and where we see an increase in the percent growth in female membership in the respondent’s country are associated with both a greater likelihood of donating as well as giving more to this international service club. Findings from our study have direct implications for voluntary service organizations, particularly with regard to issues of organizational culture, as more service organizations recruit female members.