A new book by Professors Jen Shang and Adrian Sargeant explores what might encourage more High Net Worth Individuals (HNWIs) and Ultra High Net Worth Individuals (UHNWIs) to engage with philanthropy.

Their new book, Meaningful Philanthropy, is based on a series of 48 semi-structured interviews with wealthy philanthropists from around the world. Through the science of Philanthropy Pyschology (or ‘Phil Psych’) they asked about their experience of philanthropy.

The research began in 2022 and was, appropriately, instigated by a donor who was concerned that a high percentage of HNWIs and UHNWIs were not actively engaged with philanthropy, and wondered how they could be encouraged to do so.

The authors examine how philanthropists experience their giving and the psychological challenges they need to overcome.

At its heart the book focuses on the importance of “who people are when they give”, in other words their identity, rather than the more extensively studied “why people give”. The book’s subtitle is “the person behind the giving”.

The book therefore offers a guide for new and experienced philanthropists and their trusted advisers and fundraisers in the creation of more meaningful philanthropic experiences.

Jen Shang is Professor of Philanthropic Psychology and Co-Director of the Institute for Sustainable Philanthropy. She is the world’s only philanthropic psychologist.

Adrian Sargeant is Professor of Fundraising and Co-Director of the Institute for Sustainable Philanthropy.

Meaningful Philanthropy by Jen Shang and Adrian Sargeant is published by Policy Press at Bristol University Press at £27.99.

• Read A new perspective on philanthropy: Giving in the presence or absence of self? by the authors in Transforming Society.