Why do we give at Christmas?

Christmas is a time of giving to others. And that applies not only to our family and friends, but also to charitable donations. Many nonprofit organizations run Christmas campaigns, which often have a much greater effect and impact on donors than in the rest of the year. Why is that? Research shows that some of the factors that increase donors' motivation can be especially strong during this period. In terms of the volume of donations on Darujme.cz, the winter months generally lead, and the most generous days are usually 26–28 December.

Feelings of satisfaction

Philanthropy and giving to nonprofit and charitable organizations can activate the same areas of the human brain as processing rewards, enjoying good food or using addictive substances. The decision whether or not to donate probably involves a lot of factors that are not entirely under our conscious control, and our previous experience with giving plays a role as well.

Social approval

One possible motivation for giving is the general social approval that goes with helping others. Doing things that society values is especially important to people, and Christmas can provide the ideal opportunity to ask for a donation or to give one.

Donors generally prefer to know exactly what impact their money will have and what difference it will make. Most of us prefer buying gifts for our loved ones and for people we know over donating money. It is simply much easier for us to imagine the joy they will get from the gift. Giving is often linked to empathy, and empathy grows in cases we have personal experience with.

Every year we see hundreds of great charitable projects on Darujme.cz that bring help to specific people, animals or causes both here and around the world. But we also see many people who want to help and give. And since Christmas is a time of giving, take the opportunity and join them! We believe that giving brings the same joy as receiving gifts.

Eat, drink and be merry. And what about the others?

Christmas tradition tells us to “eat, drink and be merry,” which in some cases can instead stir up feelings of guilt and solidarity with those who cannot afford such luxury. That is why at Christmas, more than at any other time, donors tend to donate food for people in need or support organizations that deal with this problem.

For example, the organization Naděje seeks out people without a roof over their heads right in the places where they survive. It offers them immediate help and further care, and enables them to regain their strength and, with the help of professionals, start dealing with their life situation so that they can return to everyday life. Jako doma focuses on women's homelessness and, together with homeless women, learns how to help them.

A great and unusual Christmas gift can be, for example, a Nocleženka (a “night-shelter voucher”), a voucher worth CZK 100 that allows one homeless person to spend a night in the warmth.

Christmas traditions

For many people, giving at Christmas time has become an established tradition. This fact alone is likely to encourage future giving too, and people will begin to see donating as a normal part of their lives. Our habitual behavior is defined by its regularity. This means that less thought is needed when deciding whether to repeat the behavior. We simply do it automatically. In the case of Christmas donations, a donor may therefore give a certain amount to the same charity every year simply because that is what they “always do.” How about becoming a Ježíškovo vnouče (a “Baby Jesus's grandchild” who fulfills the wishes of lonely seniors)?

Why donate?

For most donors, Christmas and the end of the year is also a time of taking stock and reflecting on goals and resolutions for the coming year. This fact, too, can have a positive effect on giving. At this time, the Christmas campaigns and projects of nonprofit and charitable organizations can simply shift donors' thinking from “why donate at all?” to “why not donate regularly?”.

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