[caseysoftware]

Why would you assume or imagine when you have the single biggest source of information in the world at your fingertips?

From http://www.charitynavigator.org/index.cfm?bay=content.view&#... we learn that:

- Total giving to charitable organizations was $298.42 billion in 2011 (about 2% of GDP). This is an increase of 4% from 2010.

- Giving by individuals (which includes bequests and family foundations) is critically important as it represents nearly 9 out of every 10 dollars donated.

- 32% of all donations, or $95.88 billion, went to religious organizations (down 1.7%). Much of these contributions can be attributed to people giving to their local place of worship. The next largest sector was education with $38.87 billion (up 4%).

- Donations were up to health charities (2.7%), to public benefit charities (4%), to arts, culture, humanities charities (4.1%), to International charities (7.6%), to human services charities (2.5%), to environmental and animal charities (4.6%).

For comparisons to Europe, check out: http://www.american.com/archive/2008/march-april-magazine-co...

- Per capita, Americans give 3.5x than the French, 7x Germans, 14x Italians.

- Americans are 15% more likely to volunteer than the Dutch, 21% more than the Swiss, 32% more likely than the Germans.

The pattern holds true across many demographics (education, age, income).

[rayiner]

So if the $298.42 billion donated world wide, almost half ($135 billion) went to fairly self-serving purposes (e.g. me donating to my alma mater to improve the stature of the school).

[caseysoftware]

First, those numbers were US exclusively as that was the situation you referred to.

Second, while many of the donations were to religious organizations, many food banks, shelters, etc are run by the same institutions. Assuming those categories are mutually exclusive is risky at best.

[jmathai]

I don't think data really helps you get to an answer. I can only go by my experience living in America.

My observations are that Americans definitely look out for themselves. People tend to give (as you stated) in ways that directly or indirectly benefit themselves.

These are broad generalizations but having lived here for 30 years I'd not consider our society to be generous by any stretch of the imagination.

[Shivetya]

All I can say is, I am glad I don't live where you do or hang around the people you do. Having lived here all my life I cannot count the number of people who bend over backwards to help others. I watch people with half my income give money to church, charity, and the like.

Now, in the techy world I work in, I can find a wealth of self centered pretentious types who are more concerned about how their seen that what they see.

[caseysoftware]

I was thinking he had pretty bad selection bias. If I applied the same to my day yesterday, you'd assume every software developer was a sharp female game hacker with a little too much caffeine in her system. ;)