Selfless giving

• We find that people who anticipate more personal change over time give more to others.
• This influence on generosity is shown to be distinct from several other influences.
• This paper tests not only the import of connection with the future self but also connection with others.
• When more overlap is perceived with others than with the future self, people share more with others.
• Three incentive-compatible studies find a relation between personal change and actual charitable giving.

In four studies, we show that people who anticipate more personal change over time give more to others. We measure and manipulate participants’ beliefs in the persistence of the defining psychological features of a person (e.g., his or her beliefs, values, and life goals) and measure generosity, finding support for the hypothesis in three studies using incentive-compatible charitable donation decisions and one involving hypothetical choices about sharing with loved ones.