'Poverty alleviation' and 'needy?' Why words can do more harm than good when offering help

What is it about?

Nonprofits often pull at donors’ heartstrings by casting aid recipients as “poor,” “needy” or “vulnerable.” But new Stanford research shows how such demeaning language can undermine their goal to help others. In a newly published paper, a team of Stanford psychologists provides evidence that words have an impact on the beneficiaries of financial support. In an experiment conducted in Kenya, the researchers find that language that conveys dignity and empowerment, in culturally relevant ways, diminishes shame, increases confidence and motivates recipients. Words suggesting neediness had the opposite effect. The scholars also uncovered evidence to suggest that stirring up philanthropists’ emotions by emphasizing the plight of poverty did not make much of a difference. Prospective donors were equally supportive of causes that talked about empowering people and those that spoke of rescuing the downtrodden. - From press coverage by Krysten Crawford (https://news.stanford.edu/2020/06/25/poverty-alleviation-needy-words-can-harm-good-offering-help/)

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Why is it important?

When people give aid, they often think of it just as a way to reduce economic inequalities. What they don’t often realize is that the process of giving aid can end up inadvertently highlighting or even widening status inequalities and that has unintended consequences on recipients’ welfare and behavior. Research on the topic of language and development aid has been minimal and the research conducted has been mostly qualitative, according to Thomas. Sociologists, for example, have found that the “Earned Income Tax Credit” and “Temporary Assistance for Needy Families” – both government programs for low-income Americans – yield different reactions. That research suggests that beneficiaries of the tax credit, whose use of “earned” implies accomplishment, are more likely to invest the savings in education and their futures. This study is one of the first to assess the causal impacts of these different narratives. - From press coverage by Krysten Crawford (https://news.stanford.edu/2020/06/25/poverty-alleviation-needy-words-can-harm-good-offering-help/)