Charity explains differences in life satisfaction between religious and secular New Zealanders

Abstract

This study investigated whether differences in subjective well-being between religious and non-religious people could be partially accounted for by differences in rates of charitable donation in a New Zealand national probability sample (N = 5732). Tobit regression models adjusted for the following potentially confounding demographic factors: gender differences, age, majority ethnic group membership, household income (log), education, parental status, relationship status, and political orientation. Adjusting for these other factors, the residual difference between religious and non-religious people in life satisfaction was fully accounted for by corresponding differences in the amount a person donates to charity. Given the diversity and size of our sample, and our use of strict demographic controls, our results are consistent with a model in which religious people experience greater life satisfaction because they also tend to give more to charity. Our findings thus imply that charitable giving, rather than religious affiliation per se, is a proximate predictor of life satisfaction in New Zealand. This study replicates and extends similar models tested in the USA, and shows that increasing charity, whether or not one is religious, may be a vital pathway to human flourishing.