The ‘rituals’ of fundraising events and creating the optimal forms of engagement for digital giving are among the first six doctoral research projects announced by the Centre for Sustainable Philanthropy at Plymouth University.
Other PhD projects announced by the centre include focusing on the psychology behind solicitors’ attitudes to charitable legacies and what drives public attitudes to charitable giving and fundraising.
Professor Jen Shang (pictured), director of research at the CSP, which launched in January, said the research would establish new fields of knowledge in areas such as attitude formation and fundraisers’ moral identity.
“Our aim is always to conduct actionable research that serves the needs of both fundraisers and philanthropists. These six projects will all contribute hugely in that respect,” she said.
“No project examines the ‘supporter journey’ in isolation and no project examines fundraising in isolation. They detail the ethical, social, psychological and technological conditions under which philanthropists and fundraisers could jointly sustain philanthropy.”
Ian MacQuillin, manager of Rogare, the fundraising think tank set up at the university as part of the CSP, will study how people form, express and change their views about what charitable giving is about, and what it should be about. He will explore how this then shapes their attitudes about the practice of fundraising.
Malene Fregil, a fulltime research student at the university and a consulting partner at Ingerfair, a company that specialises in volunteerism based in Norway and Denmark, will examine how fundraising events and by the end of the project she aims to show the various types of rituals involved, how they are practiced, what the national/local differences might be, and how additional value might be created for supporters.
Sophie Kong, a fulltime research student at the Plymouth, researches online fundraising, donor behavior, and effective fundraising through digital channels. Her PhD will study how fundraising rituals may emerge in the digital space as a method of social-meaning, co-creation.
Lucy Lowthian, fundraising manager at York Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, will look at how the interaction between solicitors and their clients may, or may not, enhance the legacy giving experience for the donors.
Christine Punter, legacy promotions manager at the NSPCC, will explore how legacy fundraising in relation to Irish national identity, Catholic identity, urban/rural identity and moral identity in a social demographic context.
Jessica Silye, fundraising manager at Royal Cornwall Hospital NHS Trust, will study how major gift fundraisers’ moral maturation might influence the quality of major donors’ giving experience.
A further two projects are due to be announced in the New Year.
Professor Adrian Sargeant, director of the CSP, has said it is the first academic research centre to focus on growing philanthropy in a sustainable way.
