Encounters with Philanthropic Information: Cognitive Dissonance and Implications for the Social Sector

Using interviews with senior level employees in the social sector, I analyze the interactions between organizations and individual
potential and existing donors. I recommend a reevaluation of the sector’s use of what I term “agents of philanthropy,” as
well as a reconsideration of the hesitation to introduce philanthropic giving to individuals and corporations. To support
this assertion, I conduct a thematic content analysis of The New York Times to show how the transference of philanthropic information affects the cognitions and subsequent actions of readers. Using
this analysis, I show how individuals may be primed for charitable giving if only these opportunities were presented. The
design and focus of this research addresses what I have perceived as oversights in philanthropic research to date: the exclusion
of psychology theory, an overemphasis on the conscious, stated motivations of donors, and the lack of interdisciplinary work
on prosocial behaviors.