The Just Kid Study, "Kid Altruism, 2007"
Study Background & Objective
Just Kid's Kid Altruism Study provides the first ever look
at the emerging kid altruism trend and its two sets of parallel
implications:
for businesses creating brands and products that more deeply
engage and build loyalty among kids and their families; and
for non-profits focused on the broad range of causes kids care
about.
Within this context, the study has two specific objectives.
- A first ever look at the kid altruism trend among young
children, aged 7-12 including "up close" looks at the causes
they favor, their altruistic activities, their motivations
and more;
- A road map for leveraging the emerging kid altruism mega-trend
to build kid consumer relationships and parental brand trust
in a way that is at least as effective as traditional kid marketing
tactics while more powerful and less objectionable.
Highlights
Kids are good people with big hearts and their charitable and
altruistic impulses are very strong and deep. The Just Kid
Inc. study found many startling results, including that 91
percent of kids 6 to 14 are interested in and care deeply
about helping others. When asked why they take part in voluntary
or charitable programs, 74% said it was because "it
makes me feel good inside!" (A modest number are required
to do so by schools or religious groups.)
Directed by Dr. Michelle Poris, Ph.D.., a prominent Developmental
Psychologist who heads quantitative research for Just Kid,
the online study researched 2,000 kids nationwide, accurately
reflecting the population of American kids age six to 14.
The survey revealed that a stunning 58% of kids showed a passion
and desire for helping others, choosing altruistic actions
like giving up a Saturday to help the less fortunate over more
directly self-fulfilling choices like watching tv or playing
video games. Nine out of ten kids said helping others is important
to them. The altruistic impulse proved to be broader and deeper
than anticipated.
"While girls were marginally more altruistic
than boys, the desire to help cut across all ages, incomes
and ethnicities," Dr. Poris — mother of a young
boy — acknowledged.
The causes that motivated kids the most
were providing safe places for kids and contributing to pet
safety. When asked how they feel when they take part in voluntary
or charitable programs, 79% said it made them feel proud
and 51% felt "like
my heart is bigger."
Select highlights from the study
- Thirty percent (30%) of the children surveyed volunteer and
get involved in community service activities on a monthly
basis.
- Over half of kids surveyed (54%) believe they have the
ability to make a difference and further contend that even
one person can make a positive change in the world.
- Sixty one percent (61%) of the children
who volunteer say they participate in charitable activities
because they "have fun doing it."
- Kids view their peers who volunteer very positively and
attribute positive adjectives to describe them, such as Helpful
(84%), Caring (83%), Smart (52%), Leaders (46%) and Cool (41%).
- Only nine percent (9%) of the respondents considered volunteering
and kids who volunteers as Nerdy and Nerds.
- Kids are primarily concerned with domestic issues vs. international
ones. On the community level, 55% of the respondents were
concerned with school violence.
> Learn
more about our massive Kid Altruism Study
in the hot-of-the-presses Kidformation newsletter
kid
altruism : immersion : product &
program strategy : not-profit
opportunity assessment & guidance : about
the study
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