RIGHT MOTIVATION IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN RIGHT RESPONSE - A Compilation of News and Notes Related to Fund-Raising

Sep 21, 2026

Uploaded by Ophelia

Explores how donor motivation shapes giving, arguing that right motivation matters more than right response. Positions fundraising as helping people become stewards whose money turns spirit-driven concerns into accepted responsibility. Reviews common giving motives through the lens of maturity, moving from immaturity marked by egocentrism and dependence toward mature responsibility. Analyzes motivations such as avoidance of giving, status-seeking, pride, desire for control, protection-seeking through contributions, and enlightened self-interest.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages4

Reading Time10 min

AccessFree to download

Right Motivation Is More Important Than Right Response

Fund-Raising as Stewardship Development

Motivations in Giving Through the Lens of Maturity

The Immature Giver Who Doesn’t Give

Status, Pride, and Desire to Control

Giving for Return, Protection, and Self-Interest

"RIGHT MOTIVATION IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN RIGHT RESPONSE' by:Dr.Martin E.CarlsonDirector of Stewardship and Finance,Augustana Evangelical Lutheran Church M IVLoney can be beautiful,if we make it so...here isour great challenge,namely;to help people relate theirmoney to recognized responsibility.Men are not seri-ously disturbed at the point of routine giving.If JohnSmith has been giving $5 a week to his church or $100a year to the Community Chest,he is not very apt togive less.But when a new responsibility comes along...a real conflict frequently sets in.Most of us areliving right up to the edge of our incomes,if not beyondthem.Every last dollar of the week's check is com-mitted....Most people are keenly aware that the dollarthat goes into the envelope to help build a new churchisn't going to be available to go into the new home....In this kind of a situation our task as fund raisers is,first of all,to help people recognize that which is theirresponsibility out and beyond immediate concerns....We are not just raising money;we are helping peoplebecome stewards.In this their money becomes themeans whereby their Spirit motivated concerns becomean accepted responsibility.... Right motivation is more importantthan right response ...All kinds of motives can be appealed to,to getpeople to give,but in so doing they have not beenhelped.But being concerned with making better stew-ards(and so better Christians)out of people,we willbe conccrned that the highest possible motivation beused in our work. In ordcr to understand this point better,let us takea close look at motivations at work when people give.In preparing this,I must confess that I have approached P24'59 A Compilation of News and Notes Related to Fund-Raising Volume 5 # The△SBUT中E1ětin of THE AMERICAN ASS0CIATI0N OF FUND-RAISING COUN SE L Quarterly (The fallawing material is excerpted fram a speech delivered by Dr.Carlsan,at aCapital Funds Warkshap,canducted by the Department af Stewardship and Benevalence,Natianal Cauncil af Churches,at Wagner Callege,Staten Island,N.Y.,July 13,1959.) it pretty much from the armchair and not from thelaboratory.Very little in the way of solid study intomotivation for giving has been done....But lackingsuch a study,let me make the following observationsfor what they may be worth. There are several motivations that might bc at workwhen people give.In trying to group them one coulduse such categories as spiritual and unspiritual,ade-quate and inadequate,positive and negative,egoisticand altruistic.For our purpose here I shall try torelate them to man's experience in maturing.Naturally,there are several aspects to maturity:physiological,mental,psychological and religious.We shall be con-cerned primarily with the latter two in this discussion.Maturity,or the lack of it,refiects itself in the indi-vidual's response to given situations.The immaturcperson is egocentric,explosive,has difficulty in enduringdiscomfort and usually demands immediate relief.Themature person,on the other hand,has a sense ofsecurity and independence,has control of himself andindicates an ever deepening sense of responsibility.Inrelating this elenicnt of maturity to motivation in givingwe shall begin with immature expression and then,in aroughly ascending scale,work towards the more mature. There is,first of all,the man who doesn't give Rare is the person who never gives.but not so rareis the person who can say “no”with relative ease....Thc person who can say "no"consistently and never orrarcly give must be one whose life is quite self-contained.He neither needs anything nor does he sense any respon-sibility for anyonc elsc.This is infantile in that it isconcerned only with self.The immature person is also unimaginative and unable to break the sonic barrier ofhis own selfishness. Some people give in order to secure status Jesus recognized this when he said of the Phariseesthat they gave “to be seen of men”.It may be that aman who gives

FAQs

Why does the document emphasize motivation over response in fundraising?

It argues that fundraising should cultivate stewards, so the highest motivation must guide the work. Right response without right motivation does not produce the intended spiritual stewardship.

How does the text connect maturity to motivation in giving?

It describes immature giving as egocentric and dependent, with difficulty enduring discomfort. It contrasts this with mature giving, characterized by security, self-control, and a deepening sense of responsibility.

What motives are discussed for people who give?

The document discusses motives including desire for status, pride, a wish to exercise control, seeking material or spiritual return, protection-oriented giving, and giving driven by enlightened self-interest.

Sep 21, 2026

Uploaded by Ophelia