Do people trust charities? Not so much, according to a new study. A majority of people, 73 percent, said it’s very important to trust a charity before giving, but only 19 percent said they highly trust charities.
The study also found that 10 percent of respondents were optimistic about the nonprofit world becoming more trustworthy over time.
The findings comes from a Better Business Bureau Wise Giving Alliance study of 2,100 adults in the United States.
“We rely on charities to solve some of society’s most challenging problems, and it is startling to learn only a small percentage of Americans highly trust charities,” said Art Taylor, CEO of BBB’s Give.org, in a news release.
The report, called “Give.org Donor Trust Report: An In-depth Look into the State of Trust in the Charitable Sector,” said donors’ misconceptions could be an ongoing concern.
Taylor added, “This report shows the need to strengthen public trust in the charitable sector and reminds us that the ability of charitable organizations to thrive in the future is closely tied to their ability to understand how rising — and more diverse — generations think about trust, engagement, and generosity.”
The report presents a view of public trust for charities as a whole and for specific types. Sixty seven percent of those surveyed said they trust local more than national organizations, and 62 percent said they trust smaller charities more than larger ones.
Big Changes
In a 2017 ranking of perceived trust in charity types, out of 13 options, nonprofit hospitals had the highest ranking. In 2001, it was 11th place out of the 13.
The Public’s Trust in Charities
| Nonprofit hospitals | 1 | 11 |
| Veterans | 2 | 3 |
| Social services | 3 | 5 |
| Religious | 4 | 1 |
| Health | 5 | 10 |
| Police and firefighter | 6 | 2 |
| Animal welfare | 7 | 4 |
| Youth development | 8 | 7 |
| International relief | 9 | 8 |
| Arts and culture | 10 | 9 |
| Educational | 11 | 6 |
| Environmental | 12 | 12 |
| Civil rights and community action | 13 | 13 |
Source: Better Business Bureau Wise Giving Alliance
Charities affiliated with police and firefighters as well as educational charities had lower perceived trust rankings when compared with 2001.
Other findings:
- Racial minorities and younger generations are less likely to take extra steps to vet a charity before giving.
- Both minorities and younger generations are more likely to respond to “engaging stories and perceived sincerity and passion” in a charity’s appeal when making giving decisions. They also appear to be more open to solicitations.
- Thirty-two percent of millennials (ages 20 to 36) and 46 percent of Gen Zers (those who are ages 18 or 19) said passion and sincerity are top signals of trust, compared with only 9 percent of people ages 72 to 89.
- The rate of trust in religious organizations generally increased as people got older, with 45 percent of people 72 to 89 years old having a high level of trust in those groups.
- Younger people had higher rates of trust in international relief and environmental organizations than older people.