Seeing is believing: A qualitative study examining how high and ultra-high-net-worth donors utilise evidence to inform their giving and the barriers to and facilitators of the use of evidence

Abstract

Whilst there is growing recognition across the non-profit literature, that the giving of resources ought to be informed by rigorous evidence, few studies to date have examined how high and ultra-high-net-worth donors use evidence to inform their philanthropy, the type and quality of the evidence they utilise, and how they measure the performance of the charities they support. The primary objective of this study was to examine whether and how philanthropists employ evidence to inform their decision-making. We employed in-depth qualitative research methods to elicit the perspectives of philanthropists on how they engaged with evidence and, in so doing, filled a gap in the data. We found barriers to utilising evidence included challenges in accessing evidence, difficulties in assessing the quality and appropriateness of evidence and insufficient resources to capture evidence. Facilitators of evidence use included: making evidence more accessible and enhanced access to professional philanthropy advice and advisors. Despite growing awareness of the importance of evidence, few donors employed sound evidence-based models of philanthropy.