Can Giving Just a Penny a Day Really Matter?
How Even Tiny Amounts of Charitable Donations Can Reduce Depression
I have - as do many people - a family history of mental health problems. Close relatives have struggled with substance abuse and addiction. Others have received diagnoses of depression or bipolar disorder. I’ve lost a cousin to suicide.
This personal history is probably one reason why I was drawn to study psychology as a college student, and why I’m particularly interested in understanding strategies for improving mental well-being. (Can you pick me out of this family photo, taken the day before my wedding, including my grandmother, mother, brother, as well as all of my aunts, uncles, and cousins?)
So today I’m sharing the findings from a fascinating study published earlier this year that demonstrates a very simple strategy for reducing depression: giving as little as a penny a day!
Prior research reveals that giving in general improves well-being. For example, people who buy a gift for someone else, volunteer, or perform random acts of kindness all report increases in happiness. But most of this work is conducted on people who are already generally high in well-being, and therefore it’s not clear whether giving would be as effective among people struggling with mental health challenges.
Researchers in this new study wanted to extend this prior work by examining whether even making very tiny donations would have similar positive effects - and, most importantly, whether such giving could help people who are experiencing depression.
They started by recruiting more than 800 people with symptoms of depression to participate in a study on how microdonations - meaning very small donations to charitable causes - could create a better society. Study participants were then randomly assigned them to one of two conditions.
People in one group - the intervention group - were sent a daily reminder (for two months) to make a small donation to an online charitable platform, which included various project options for their contribution (e.g., health care, education, environmental causes, and so on). This message emphasized only the importance of donating, and not the amount: “Charity encompasses love, regardless of its size, and even one cent holds value.”
People in the other group were simply assigned to a waitlist. They did not receive this daily contact during the two month period (but then later received the same microdonation intervention).
Their findings provide clear evidence that even tiny donations - as little as a penny a day - can have big effects. People who received the daily reminders to donate reported greater reductions in depressive symptoms than those in the waitlist condition. They also reported greater increases in positive mood, including happiness, joy, and contentment.
What explains these big effects of small donations? The researchers believe that giving creates a “warm glow,” meaning a feeling of personal satisfaction from making a difference in the world. As one study participant noted, “Offering even a small amount of help to others makes me feel that life has purpose.” This increase in positivity, in turn, helps reduce symptoms of depression.
Here’s the simple takeaway from this research: giving to others - even tiny amounts - is a simple strategy we can all use to feel better. As Mark Twain noted, “The best way to cheer yourself up is to try to cheer someone else up.”
Now a couple of questions for you: Does this finding surprise you - or does it fit with your own experience about the benefits of giving? What’s your explanation for why donating as little as a penny a day was so helpful in reducing depression? Please share in the comments!
Just wondering, does a person derive the same psychological benefit from charitable contributions that are set up to be paid automatically every month, as payments that are made by writing out a separate check each and every month?
This reminds me of that story about the one starfish on the beach. The boy was unable to put back the hundreds of starfish that were perishing on the sand, but he was able to make a small difference by helping at least some of them.
I've been on the receiving end and giving end of charity and financial help. As grateful as I was for food stamps when I was a single mom of three school-aged kids, I get more satisfaction from donating. Like the 12 packages of chicken gizzards (that were mistakenly included in my daughter's grocery delivery order) to a local food place. It's called FK Your Diet, which stands for Foster Kids. Not what you're thinking!! LOL They're set up like a lunch counter and restaurant and feed people for free.
I also donate small amounts, like $5 and $10, to independent media and grassroots organizers. My donations can only occur with the middle-of-the-month paycheck because all of my 1st-of-the-month paycheck goes to rent. Sometimes I think my paltry donation really doesn't change anything. But there are a lot more of us than billionaires and corporations, so just like the many starfish on the beach, maybe we can make a difference.