Do Parents’ Political Connections Matter for Children's Charitable Giving?

ABSTRACT Objective Nonprofit research on the influence of politics is emerging, while few scholars investigate such issues from intergenerational perspective. Following the cultural transmission model, our study examines whether and how parents’ political connections affect children's giving. Method Employing data from the 2014 and 2018 China Labor‐force Dynamics Survey, we estimate a truncated normal hurdle model to reveal the impact of political connections on giving from intergenerational perspective. Results The findings indicate that individuals whose parents are politically connected are more likely to give and donate higher amounts to charity than others. Drawing inspiration from vertical socialization, the results uncover that intergenerational transmission of political connections, the model effect of parents’ giving, and cultivating children's ability to donate are reasons for the positive association between parents’ political connections and children's charitable giving. Further analysis finds that oblique socialization measured by the neighborhood pressure and peer effect has a positive moderating effect on paths of vertical socialization. Conclusion The influence of politics on charitable donations has intergenerational transmission, which needs attention in the development of charity.