Pretty cool that you’re running all these studies!
Speaking loosely*, it feels like >70% of the psychology academics I know who’s interested in effective altruism are studying some version or another of “psychology of effective vs ineffective givers for small donations.” And yet I very rarely (never?) talk to non-psychology researchers or decision-makers in EA who think that this is an unusually promising/impactful/decision-relevant avenue of inquiry.
I’m curious whether you a) agree with these impressions, b) have strong views on why this disconnect exists and c) have object-level viewpoints you’d like to share about why questions in this general line of inquiry should/should not be prioritized (whether for direct impact or other reasons).
*Just personal impressions, not a survey or anything.
First, you’re right that several EA psychology researchers are studying how people donate to charity. But most of them (including myself) are also studying other EA-related topics, such as the psychology of xrisk and longtermism, moral attitudes towards animals, etc. My hunch is that only a minority of currently ongoing EA psychological research projects have charitable giving as their primary topic of interest.
Second, as David pointed out, donation choices are a useful behavioral outcome measure when studying the public’s beliefs, attitudes and preferences about EA related issues more generally. In many cases, the goal of the research is not necessarily to understand how people donate to charity specifically but to understand the fundamental psychological drivers of and obstacles to EA-aligned attitudes and behavior more generally (example). Studying these in the context of charitable giving is an obvious and often straightforward first step — in the hope that these insights can be generalized.
For example, the fact that people are willing to split their donation, as described in the post, tells us something more fundamental about people’s preferences structure (the fact that most people value effectiveness but only as a secondary preference), the potential market size of EA in the general public, and possible routes for reaching a wider adoption of EA ideas. Another example is the study of individual differences: who are the people who immediately find EA ideas appealing, where can we find them and how should we target them? It’s natural to test this, in part, by observing people’s donation choices.
My view on prioritization is that psychological research can be useful when it yields such fundamental insights. But there can also be really useful applied research, such as marketing or psychometric research that can be practically useful for recruitment.
My view on prioritization is that psychological research can be useful when it yields such fundamental insights. But there can also be really useful applied research, such as marketing or psychometric research that can be practically useful for recruitment.
Can you elaborate a bit more on what you consider the distinction between fundamental and applied research is, here? (To be clear I’m aware of the usual distinction, I’m just confused about how it’s applicable here).
Linch, fwiw I try to consider this case here … see fold “Why should ‘Effective Altruists’ and those interested in long-term global priorities care” , and in some other writings I could share with you. But I’d also be interested in Lucius’ take
Also, I think Linch, in my impression
you might be overstating the extent to which the EA-interested psych people are doing this; perhaps my connection to you has made this more salient?
also, as I argue in the link etc., the ‘small donations’ (or even better, modest real-world donations) are not always/only the outcome of interest itself, but these are pretty good measures of actual commitments, beliefs and preferences (economists tend to be pretty favorable to this too) … In contrast self-stated attitudes, hypothetical choices, or retrospective ‘why did I make this choice’ can be unreliable.
Pretty cool that you’re running all these studies!
Speaking loosely*, it feels like >70% of the psychology academics I know who’s interested in effective altruism are studying some version or another of “psychology of effective vs ineffective givers for small donations.” And yet I very rarely (never?) talk to non-psychology researchers or decision-makers in EA who think that this is an unusually promising/impactful/decision-relevant avenue of inquiry.
I’m curious whether you a) agree with these impressions, b) have strong views on why this disconnect exists and c) have object-level viewpoints you’d like to share about why questions in this general line of inquiry should/should not be prioritized (whether for direct impact or other reasons).
*Just personal impressions, not a survey or anything.
Thanks, Linch.
First, you’re right that several EA psychology researchers are studying how people donate to charity. But most of them (including myself) are also studying other EA-related topics, such as the psychology of xrisk and longtermism, moral attitudes towards animals, etc. My hunch is that only a minority of currently ongoing EA psychological research projects have charitable giving as their primary topic of interest.
Second, as David pointed out, donation choices are a useful behavioral outcome measure when studying the public’s beliefs, attitudes and preferences about EA related issues more generally. In many cases, the goal of the research is not necessarily to understand how people donate to charity specifically but to understand the fundamental psychological drivers of and obstacles to EA-aligned attitudes and behavior more generally (example). Studying these in the context of charitable giving is an obvious and often straightforward first step — in the hope that these insights can be generalized.
For example, the fact that people are willing to split their donation, as described in the post, tells us something more fundamental about people’s preferences structure (the fact that most people value effectiveness but only as a secondary preference), the potential market size of EA in the general public, and possible routes for reaching a wider adoption of EA ideas. Another example is the study of individual differences: who are the people who immediately find EA ideas appealing, where can we find them and how should we target them? It’s natural to test this, in part, by observing people’s donation choices.
My view on prioritization is that psychological research can be useful when it yields such fundamental insights. But there can also be really useful applied research, such as marketing or psychometric research that can be practically useful for recruitment.
Can you elaborate a bit more on what you consider the distinction between fundamental and applied research is, here? (To be clear I’m aware of the usual distinction, I’m just confused about how it’s applicable here).
Linch, fwiw I try to consider this case here … see fold “Why should ‘Effective Altruists’ and those interested in long-term global priorities care” , and in some other writings I could share with you. But I’d also be interested in Lucius’ take
Also, I think Linch, in my impression
you might be overstating the extent to which the EA-interested psych people are doing this; perhaps my connection to you has made this more salient?
also, as I argue in the link etc., the ‘small donations’ (or even better, modest real-world donations) are not always/only the outcome of interest itself, but these are pretty good measures of actual commitments, beliefs and preferences (economists tend to be pretty favorable to this too) … In contrast self-stated attitudes, hypothetical choices, or retrospective ‘why did I make this choice’ can be unreliable.