Showing workers how their work helped others may get them to do more

The study

1. 01

   Who took part

   99 people took part in three experiments: 33 fundraising callers, 32 pool lifeguards and 34 new callers. The groups averaged about 19 to 21 years old. Most of the first group were men, and the lifeguards worked in the midwestern United States.

2. 02

   What they did

   One group read stories about how the job helped other people, such as scholarship students or rescued swimmers. The other groups read stories about how the job helped themselves, read work information, or got nothing.

3. 03

   What happened

   In the first experiment, pledges rose from about 9 to about 23 a week for the stories group. Donation money rose from about $1,288 to about $3,131 a week. The other groups did not change clearly. In the lifeguard study, the stories group signed up for more hours, and was rated as helping guests more. In the third experiment, new callers who read the stories got about 28 pledges in their first week, against about 16.

What the study found

1. HelpedGoals

   Callers who read how their work helped students earned more pledges and raised more money a month later.

   • Action: Think about who your work helpstested

   Small randomised trial of 99 fundraising callers and pool lifeguards · vs callers who read about personal benefit, or got nothing · behaviour was recorded · ⚠ whole groups were assigned, not people; many people dropped out

2. HelpedGoals

   Lifeguards who read about rescues signed up for more hours each week, while the other group did not change.

   • Action: Think about who your work helpstested

   Small randomised trial of 99 fundraising callers and pool lifeguards · vs lifeguards who read about personal benefit · behaviour was recorded · ⚠ whole groups were assigned, not people; many people dropped out

3. HelpedOther outcomes

   Lifeguards who read about rescues were rated as helping guests more, and the other group as helping less.

   • Action: Think about who your work helpstested

   Small randomised trial of 99 fundraising callers and pool lifeguards · vs lifeguards who read about personal benefit · behaviour was recorded · ⚠ whole groups were assigned, not people; many people dropped out

4. HelpedGoals

   New callers who read how the work helped students earned more pledges in their first week.

   • Action: Think about who your work helpstested

   Small randomised trial of 99 fundraising callers and pool lifeguards · vs new callers who read policy information · behaviour was recorded · ⚠ whole groups were assigned, not people; many people dropped out

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