Social capital as a resource for prosocial donation behavior? Quantitative evidence on the dark side of strategic networking

Theory suggests that selfless prosocial behaviors originate from motives grounded in tangible, motivational, and psychological resources, which can be activated to stimulate volunteering and charitable giving. This study investigates how individuals’ social capital may serve as such a resource; it explores the peculiar role of the strategic pursuit of relationships to predict individuals’ likelihood of engaging in prosocial behavior. Based on survey responses by n = 779 German citizens actively engaged in nonprofit hobbyist communities, we find that individuals with higher social capital are more likely to donate their incentive for study participation to charity. However, individuals who maintain relationships for strategic reasons are significantly less likely to donate. These results enhance our understanding of social capital as a conditional resource for prosocial behavior, highlighting practical implications for fundraising, and help practitioners better understand donor motivation and the relevance of networks and social capital for charity.