Contingent Match Incentives Increase Donations

Lalin  Anik; Michael I. Norton; Dan  Ariely

Article | Journal of Marketing Research (JMR)

Contingent Match Incentives Increase Donations

by Lalin Anik, Michael I. Norton and Dan Ariely

Abstract

We propose a new means by which non-profits can induce donors to give today and commit to giving in the future: contingent match incentives, in which matching is made contingent on the percentage of others who give (e.g., "if X% of others give, we will match all donations"). A field experiment shows that a 75% contingent match (where matches "kick in" only if 75% of others donate) is most effective in increasing commitment to recurring donations. An online experiment reveals that the 75% contingent match drives commitment to recurring donations because it simultaneously provides social proof yet offers a low enough target that it remains plausible that the match will occur. A final online experiment demonstrates that the effectiveness of the 75% contingent match extends to one-time donations. We discuss the practical and theoretical implications of contingent matches for managers and academics.

Keywords: matching donations; social proof; prosocial behavior; charitable giving; plausibility; Motivation and Incentives; Philanthropy and Charitable Giving;

Format: Print

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Citation:

Anik, Lalin, Michael I. Norton, and Dan Ariely. "Contingent Match Incentives Increase Donations." Journal of Marketing Research (JMR) 51, no. 6 (December 2014): 790–801.

Article | Journal of the Association for Consumer Research | April 2019

Rituals and Nuptials: The Emotional and Relational Consequences of Relationship Rituals

Ximena Garcia-Rada, Ovul Sezer and Michael I. Norton

Four studies reveal the benefits of relationship rituals: couples with relationship rituals report more positive emotions and greater relationship satisfaction and commitment than those without them. We show that rituals are crucial for understanding consumption practices in romantic relationships. Using a sample of romantic dyads, we identify a novel moderating role of mutual agreement, such that both members of a couple must agree that they have a ritual: different couples can see the same consumption behavior (e.g., paying for a weekly date night) as either a ritual or a routine, and the benefits accrue only to those couples who jointly view it as a symbolically meaningful ritual. We contribute to the literature on rituals by empirically documenting the relationships between rituals, specific emotions, and relationship satisfaction, and by demonstrating that the same sequence of actions can have different psychological effects due to the role of mutual agreement. Finally, we contribute to research on consumers’ shared experiences by suggesting a novel mechanism for committing to such experiences: relationship rituals.

Keywords: rituals; Relationship Satisfaction; Relationships; Satisfaction; Spending; Behavior; Perception; Emotions;

Citation:

Garcia-Rada, Ximena, Ovul Sezer, and Michael I. Norton. "Rituals and Nuptials: The Emotional and Relational Consequences of Relationship Rituals." Journal of the Association for Consumer Research 4, no. 2 (April 2019): 185–197. View Details

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Contingent Match Incentives Increase Donations

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