How the emotions evoked by homeless pets induce online charitable giving

Abstract

In this study, we investigated the relationship between emotions and charitable behavior in the context of pet charities. In particular, we examined the role of pet characteristics such as age, health status, signs of homelessness, and the animal being in the presence of a human as factors in a potential benefactors' emotional state (valence and arousal) that are associated with the willingness to donate. We conducted an online experiment in which participants (N = 54) voluntarily donated in response to being presented with pictures of dogs in various conditions. Emotional state was measured as self-reported valence and arousal. Our findings showed that willingness to donate was higher when participants experienced unpleasant emotions with a high arousal. In addition, we found that animals' apparent sickness and signs of homelessness provoked larger donations, while age (adult or puppy) and being in the presence of a human did not affect charitable behavior. Our study contributes to the research on the effectiveness of charity appeals in the context of pet charities and complements the literature on human prosocial behavior in support of other species. The results have practical implications for the development of advertising on behalf of pet charities as they explore the impact of dogs' characteristics on donors' emotions and willingness to donate under ecologically valid conditions, in contrast to previous laboratory studies.