Exploring the Underpinnings of Transnational Philanthropy: Evidence From the Turkish Diaspora in Europe

ABSTRACT This study explores the underpinnings of transnational philanthropy among Turkish diaspora members in Germany, France, and Belgium, addressing persistent fragmentation in how diaspora giving has been theorized and empirically examined. While existing research has often reduced transnational philanthropy to economic remittances or religious obligation, this study conceptualizes it as a morally embedded, relational, and meaning‐laden transnational practice. Drawing on 30 in‐depth interviews with long‐term Turkish‐origin residents, the analysis employs reflexive thematic analysis to identify seven interrelated domains of giving: cultural and homeland ties; religious duty and faith‐based giving; social status and prestige; trust and familiar networks; moral responsibility and solidarity; political and ideological alignment; and economic and developmental contribution. The findings demonstrate that these motivations operate in overlapping and dynamic ways, are mediated by trusted relational infrastructures, and are interpreted as identity work and transnational citizenship. Giving practices are shown to be deeply shaped by host‐country institutional contexts, including mosque‐based organizational density in Germany, secular regulatory constraints in France, and kinship‐centered association networks in Belgium. The study advances scholarship on transnational philanthropy by integrating motivations, mechanisms, and meanings into a coherent analytic framework grounded in donor narratives. By positioning diaspora donors as moral, civic, and relational actors rather than merely economic contributors, the article offers both theoretical refinement and practical insight for organizations and policymakers seeking to engage diaspora philanthropy more effectively.