Assessing Racial Disparities in Crowdfunding Donations Through an Experimental Survey

Crowdfunding platforms represent a growing yet unequal social safety net for American families. While past research has consistently highlighted poorer donation outcomes for campaigners of color, data limitations have obscured a focus on the role of donor characteristics. Using novel data from a factorial survey in which respondents evaluated fictional crowdfunding campaigns ( n = 1,459), this study assesses the extent to which the race of both campaigner and campaign evaluator shapes respondents’ reported willingness to donate. Results from the experimental survey indicate a higher willingness to donate to Black beneficiaries, lending insight into the structural inequalities that shape racially disparate outcomes across actual campaigns. Analyses further indicate a heightened willingness to donate among Black evaluators, with this association being significantly stronger among Black respondents evaluating Black campaigners. These findings contribute to our understanding of how characteristics of both crowdfunding beneficiaries and donors, as well as social homophily between the two, shape campaign outcomes.