Giving Is Down but Caring Is Up

The people of the United States were ranked as the most generous in the world in terms of giving time and money to nonprofits in 2011, up from fifth place in 2010 according to the Los Angeles Times. Sixty-five percent of Americans said they donated money to charity, 43 percent volunteered their time and 73 percent helped a stranger. As far as giving money, Thailand is the most generous with 85 percent of their population donating money and in the United Kingdom, 79 percent gave money; but the British and most of the rest of the world are about half as likely to do volunteer work as Americans; so that is how America regained its No. 1 ranking in 2011. The top-ranked USA was followed by Ireland, Australia, New Zealand and the UK.

The Center of Philanthropy at Indiana University reported that Americans overall contributed 2 percent of disposable personal income to philanthropic causes, which is the percent that has remained consistent over the decades through the boom times and recessions.

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