Generosity

Generosity’s Composition

When cataloguing character strengths valued across cultures throughout history researchers fold the trait of generosity into the broader concept of altruistic love, which is defined as the self being oriented toward another. Altruistic love also includes other-oriented character strengths such as kindness, compassion, and care. Three key components of generosity are identifiable from its association with altruistic love. First, generous people are others focused. They have an outward orientation that is drawn to the needs of others.

Second, and importantly, the motivation behind this other focus is affective: There is a genuine feeling of respect for the other and a desire to see the other flourish. Generous motivation is not simply a duty or principle-based respect. Third, generosity results in actual behavior, or a movement to help the other in some capacity. These three components of altruistic love are key aspects of generosity; however, these components are also key to other virtues folded into altruistic love.

So what, then, is unique about generosity? Giving to others is at the heart of generosity and separates generosity from its related virtues. However, while giving is central to generosity, generosity is more than simply giving. Generosity involves giving with two important qualifiers. First, generosity involves giving with the true needs of the other in mind and moving to meet those needs in the most effective way possible, [Page 944]regardless of the inconvenience to the giver. Giving as a matter of convenience (such as donating a broken-down car to National Public Radio) or out of excess (giving a small percentage of many millions), may be good actions, but they do not rise to the level of generosity.

The second qualifier necessary for giving to rise to generosity is for the giving to go above and beyond social expectations in a situation—to give abundantly. Giving abundantly is more nuanced than simply “giving a lot.” Giving a lot implies numerical heft, whereas generosity involves a relativity principle. Giving abundantly is relative to the giver’s capacity for giving. A child giving three stickers out of four can be considered more generous than a child giving four stickers out of ten.

In addition, giving abundantly is relative to the social expectations relevant to the situation at hand. When someone stops and asks for directions, the social expectation is to spend a few minutes and verbally guide them toward their destination. A generous response might involve walking the direction seeker to their destination.

Given how other centric generosity is, can an action or motivation still be considered generous if the end result of the generous action results in positive benefits to the giver? The short answer is yes, generous people do tend to receive benefits from their actions. However, these benefits cannot be the primary motivator behind the generous actions. An inherent component of generosity is the other-centered motivation. If the motivation shifts toward a self-centered desire for the likely benefits of generosity, the actions are no longer considered generous.

...