Why the Wealthy Give: The Culture of Elite Philanthropy

203 Pages·2001·1.657 MB·English

by  Francie Ostrower

WHY THE WEALTHY GIVE

WHY THE WEALTHY GIVE
THE CULTURE OF
ELITE PHILANTHROPY
FRANCIE OSTROWER
PRINCETON UNIVERSITY PRESS
PRINCETON, NEW JERSEY
Copyright(cid:211) 1995byPrincetonUniversityPress
PublishedbyPrincetonUniversityPress,41WilliamStreet,
Princeton,NewJersey08540
IntheUnitedKingdom:PrincetonUniversityPress,
Chichester,WestSussex
AllRightsReserved
LibraryofCongressCataloging-in-PublicationData
Ostrower,Francie.
Whythewealthygive:thecultureofelitephilanthropy/
FrancieOstrower.
p. cm.
Includesbibliographicalreferences(p. )andindex.
eISBN 1-4008-0600-3
1.Philanthropists—NewYorkCity(N.Y.) 2.Charities—
NewYorkCity(N.Y.) 3.Voluntarism—NewYorkCity(N.Y.)
4.Elite(Socialsciences)—NewYorkCity(N.Y.)I.Title.
HV99.N59085 1995 361.7¢4—dc20 95-2854
ThisbookhasbeencomposedinGalliard
To my father, with thanks

CONTENTS
LIST OF TABLES ix
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS xi
INTRODUCTION 3
CHAPTERONE
Philanthropy and Status Boundaries among the Elite 28
CHAPTERTWO
Religion, Ethnicity, and Jewish Philanthropy 50
CHAPTERTHREE
Gender, Marriage,and Philanthropy 69
CHAPTERFOUR
Education, Culture, and the Institutionalizationof
Philanthropic Values 86
CHAPTERFIVE
Attitudes toward Inheritance and Philanthropic Bequests 100
CHAPTERSIX
Government and Philanthropy: Alternativesor Complements? 113
CONCLUSION 132
METHODOLOGICAL APPENDIX 143
NOTES 145
BIBLIOGRAPHY 177
INDEX 185

TABLES
1.1 Number of Board Memberships Held by Donors 29
1.2 Relationships Cited in Connection with Donors’ Largest
Gifts (Percentages by Area) 30
1.3 Distributionof Donors by Area of Giving (Largest Gifts) 40
1.4 Determinants of Board Membership: OrdinaryLeast
Squares and Logistic Regression Results 46
2.1 Donors’ Religious Affiliation and Area of Giving (Largest
Gifts) 54
3.1 Gender and Area of Giving (Largest Gifts) 73
3.2 Gifts of $1,000 or More Received from Men, Women, and
Couples by Large New York Nonprofits in DifferentAreas
of Activity 75
3.3 Percentage of Women on Large New York Nonprofit
Boards by Area of Activity 82
5.1 Percentage of Donors’ Estate Left to Philanthropy: Means
and Medians 109
5.2 Percentage of Donors’ Estate Left to Philanthropy:
Regression Analysis Results 110