tag:theconversation.com,2011:/us/topics/red-nose-day-37115/articlesRed Nose Day – The Conversation2019-03-15T12:20:02Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1134982019-03-15T12:20:02Z2019-03-15T12:20:02ZWhat Red Nose Day tells us about the need for comic relief in the modern workplace<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/263923/original/file-20190314-28483-1lvecz7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Red Nose Day – organised by <a href="https://www.comicrelief.com/">Comic relief</a> – is one of the only times of year when it’s OK to go to work in a brightly coloured wig and throw gunge at your boss. </p>
<p>Founded by the comedy scriptwriter Richard Curtis and comedian Lenny Henry in response to famine in Ethiopia, the telethon has raised more than £1 billion since it began in 1985. And much of the money included in this “grand total” is raised by staff in shops, supermarkets, banks, restaurants and other high street locations up and down the country.</p>
<p>Employee fundraising is the most common way UK-based companies <a href="https://www.institute-of-fundraising.org.uk/library/corporate-fundraising-a-snapshot-of-current-practice-in-the-uk/">support charities</a>, and similar activity can be found <a href="https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1057/9781137341532_33">across the world</a>. The phrase “corporate philanthropy” suggests donations that are approved in the boardroom and made from company profits, but when it comes to raising funds from customers and colleagues, shop floor employees do most of the legwork. They organise the fundraising activities, explain the charitable cause to customers, ask for contributions and thank the donors. </p>
<p>Yet despite their essential role, little is known about why employees get involved with good causes. <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10551-018-4093-x">So our new research</a> looked to gain a better understanding of the “shop floor” perspective on corporate philanthropy, to discover the motivations and expectations of this army of fundraisers on the shop floor. </p>
<p>We wanted to to find out how staff members decide which causes to support (Comic Relief being only one of many beneficiaries) as well as what fundraising activities to develop. We also looked at what motivates them to become involved, and how their decision making and charitable behaviour might differ from that of business owners and managers. </p>
<h2>Giving to good causes</h2>
<p>Charity fundraising relies on askers as much as givers. And research demonstrates that <a href="https://www.institute-of-fundraising.org.uk/library/insights-report-2-why-people-give-and-experience-of-donating/">most donations are prompted</a>, proving the adage that “if you don’t ask you don’t get”. </p>
<p>But our results highlight distinct differences between the goals and motivations of business leaders and their employees. While the bosses seek “brand alignment” with appropriate charities that can deliver proven business benefits, their employees prefer causes that are personally meaningful and related to their own life events. </p>
<p>Many of the staff members we spoke with expressed their disquiet about the types of causes prioritised by their corporate leaders – which are often perceived as less worthy than charities they would choose. One of the people we spoke with explained how their company had recently made a major investment in an arts organisation: “Theatre is like a luxury, you can live without a theatre.” </p>
<p>In all the workplaces we studied, the causes most likely to inspire enthusiastic employee fundraising efforts were cancer charities, children’s charities and hospices. Personal connections and experiences trigger these preferences – as someone working in a bank explained: “One of our colleagues unfortunately died in one of the hospices, so there is a personal feel for the hospice that we’re trying to raise funds for.” And a supermarket employee noted: “Lots of colleagues do tend to think of cancer charities –- and yes, that’s number one in my book. And children’s charities for the obvious reasons.” </p>
<h2>Fun in fundraising</h2>
<p>Once a “seriously worthwhile” charity is chosen by employees, employees then expect workplace fundraising to be “seriously fun”. An opportunity for light relief from their day job, while breaking down barriers between staff, customers and managers. </p>
<p>Reflecting on her motivation for voluntarily leading the staff charity committee, one woman explained: “You go down the chilled meat aisle and there’s some guy standing there in a blue wig and some Elton John blue sunglasses. It’s just a bit of fun and the customers love it as well.” </p>
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<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/263927/original/file-20190314-28487-4dpw0i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/263927/original/file-20190314-28487-4dpw0i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=345&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/263927/original/file-20190314-28487-4dpw0i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=345&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/263927/original/file-20190314-28487-4dpw0i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=345&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/263927/original/file-20190314-28487-4dpw0i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=434&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/263927/original/file-20190314-28487-4dpw0i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=434&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/263927/original/file-20190314-28487-4dpw0i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=434&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Raising money for charity can take lots of different forms.</span>
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<p>The fun also involves shop floor staff organising activities that can be painful, embarrassing and even humiliating for their managers. In another supermarket we were told that: “Last year we had all of our section leaders and half our managers having their legs waxed and chests waxed.” Customer-service staff in a different company gleefully announced: “We’re having some stocks made. I’ve actually just been offered a gunge tank as well, and the managers will go in those.” </p>
<h2>Turn the tables</h2>
<p>Our study also highlights a previously overlooked aspect of corporate philanthropy, and that is the creation of what anthropologists call “liminal spaces” – where the normal ways of behaving and organising social life are temporarily overturned. Workplace fundraising can satisfy shop floor staff’s desire for some –- albeit shortlived –- power and enjoyment at the expense of their corporate superiors. </p>
<p>Of course, it is not only during fundraising activities that “liminality” occurs in the workplace. It also happens at other culturally sanctioned times in the calendar, such as the annual office Christmas party when normal standards of deferential behaviour are lifted. And at away days or outward bound-type trips when conventional ranks are disregarded in pursuit of team building objectives. </p>
<p>Ultimately though, this new research reinforces the point that philanthropy typically dovetails with personal concerns. Specifically, it shows that prioritising the philanthropic preferences of people on the shop floor over those in the boardroom enables companies to respect the moral claims of their staff and helps to humanise the workplace with employees’ personal experiences. All of which increases their likelihood of being enthusiastic participants in fundraising activities.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/113498/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Beth Breeze received funding for the study discussed in this article from the Economic and Social Research Council, UK (ESRC ref: RES-593-25-0003)</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Pamala Wiepking does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>From bake sales to office Olympics, fundraising for Red Nose Day can boost staff morale and lets employees support a good cause.Beth Breeze, Director, Centre for Philanthropy, University of KentPamala Wiepking, Visiting Stead Family Chair in International Philanthropy, Lilly Family School of Philanthropy, Indiana UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1016612018-08-30T18:54:14Z2018-08-30T18:54:14ZMore than just lip service: done right, awareness-raising days can pack a punch<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/233034/original/file-20180822-149487-u5u08i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">The first Sydney Mardi Gras in 1978 was a defining moment in the history of LGBTIQ rights in Australia.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">www.shutterstock.com</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Through the year there are now countless awareness-raising days for a range of causes. Whether you’re sending your child to school with a gold coin for <a href="https://rednoseday.com.au/">Red Nose Day</a> or wearing a pink ribbon on your lapel to work for <a href="https://canceraustralia.gov.au/healthy-living/campaigns-events/breast-cancer-awareness-month">Breast Cancer Awareness Month</a>, these initiatives are now common in Australian daily life. But what’s the purpose of these events and do they actually work? </p>
<p>In a time of social media “<a href="https://theconversation.com/slacktivism-that-works-small-changes-matter-69271">slacktivism</a>” from behind computer screens, there has been <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2015/may/22/why-awareness-raising-campaigns-backfire">much criticism</a> of the practical ability of awareness-raising campaigns to bring about real social change beyond superficial <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/31/health/breast-cancer-awareness-pink.html">feel-good politics</a>. </p>
<p>There’s no hard data to suggest days such as <a href="http://wearitpurple.org/">Wear It Purple Day</a> this week actually have a long-term effect. But there is some evidence similar events provide important visibility for complex social issues and can create social change. </p>
<h2>Wear It Purple</h2>
<p>Wear It Purple Day is celebrated on the last Friday in August each year. It’s an annual event to raise awareness about same-sex attracted and gender diverse young people’s experiences of bullying and harassment, particularly at school. </p>
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<p>Wear It Purple was founded in 2010 in response to high rates of young people taking their lives as a result of homophobic bullying. This event is now an international movement. Many Australian workplaces and schools will host bake sales and encourage staff and students to wear purple clothes to support their lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex and queer (LGBTIQ) peers. </p>
<p>The Queensland Police Service have even issued officers and staff with <a href="https://www.qnews.com.au/queensland-police-officers-to-lace-up-for-wear-it-purple-day-2018/">purple bootlaces</a> to wear on the day. </p>
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<p>But while these celebrations of diversity and inclusion send an important message, it’s unlikely they’ll have any real effect if they don’t give people practical things they can do to help the cause, or if they don’t engage the broader community in a meaningful way.</p>
<h2>R U OK? Day</h2>
<p><a href="https://www.ruok.org.au/">R U OK?</a> Day, held annually in September, is dedicated to reminding people to ask others “are you OK?”, in terms of their mental health. </p>
<p><a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/14623730.2016.1209423">Researchers from across Australia</a> used a population survey to find out what impact this event was having in the community. They found people who were aware of R U OK? Day were more willing to talk with others about their troubles and to hear the troubles of others. </p>
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<p>Melbourne-based researchers reviewed suicide prevention media campaigns more broadly and found they create positive impacts in the community, including <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/29190128">boosting help-seeking behaviours</a> and improvements in attitudes about suicide. </p>
<h2>White Ribbon Day</h2>
<p>White Ribbon Day has become a global movement to end violence against women. Its <a href="https://www.whiteribbon.org.au/about/our-history/">history in Australia</a> is one example of how an awareness-raising day can be the platform for building a broader movement. Starting as an annual White Ribbon Day on November 25, the organisation now delivers education programs and bystander initiatives. </p>
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<p>Although it continues to attract <a href="http://journals.sagepub.com.ezproxy.utas.edu.au/doi/10.1177/0004865817722187">critics</a>, White Ribbon Day demonstrates the potential for one-off awareness-raising days to have a broader social impact when expanded into an ongoing movement, organisation, or initiative.</p>
<h2>Mardi Gras</h2>
<p>This year marked the 40th anniversary of the first <a href="http://www.mardigras.org.au/history">Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras</a> march in Sydney. It began in 1978 as a protest against police brutality of gay men. The 1978 Sydney Mardi Gras became a defining moment in the history of LGBTIQ rights in Australia and remains symbolic for the LGBTIQ community. The Sydney Mardi Gras marches put <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/14616680902827092">Sydney on the map</a> as an <a href="https://read.dukeupress.edu/glq/article/8/1-2/81/69408/MARDI-GRAS-TOURISM-AND-THE-CONSTRUCTION-OF-SYDNEY">international gay and lesbian city</a>. </p>
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<p>A <a href="http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/089124101030004003">study</a> found Pride marches such as Mardi Gras are important for raising awareness of social injustice for event participants. They also enhance participants’ sense of identity in everyday life through collective experiences of resistance and the shared identity. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/how-the-histories-of-mardi-gras-and-gay-tourism-in-australia-are-intertwined-92733">How the histories of Mardi Gras and gay tourism in Australia are intertwined</a>
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<h2>More than just lip service</h2>
<p>Taken together, these examples show how raising awareness is only the first step in creating social change. The impact of awareness-raising days is in their power to start conversations about important issues and provide visibility to causes that might otherwise be absent in the public sphere. </p>
<p>While there is a real danger of equity and diversity days reducing the issue to a local or individual concern, there’s also the potential for such events to create dramatic change in policy if communities get behind the cause. </p>
<p>Practical strategies that help give awareness-raising days momentum include having a clear call for action, such as R U OK? Day, which aims to promote conversation between individuals and raise awareness of mental health. Or by leveraging the passionate people invested in the cause, similar to Mardi Gras. Or to work strategically with key stakeholders to build longer term awareness-raising programs into organisations, such is the work of White Ribbon.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/101661/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Ruby Grant receives funding from the University of Tasmania's Institute for the Study of Social Change.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Kim Beasy does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Research shows awareness-raising days can have long-term impact if they have a clear call to action, leverage the passion of those involved, or target policy-makers.Kim Beasy, Lecturer in Curriculum and Pedagogy (Equity and Diversity), University of TasmaniaRuby Grant, PhD Candidate in Sociology, University of TasmaniaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/749522017-03-23T13:05:39Z2017-03-23T13:05:39ZThe generous psychology of giving to Comic Relief<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/162165/original/image-20170323-3520-16be5uf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">BBC</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>There is clearly something very funny about <a href="https://www.rednoseday.com">Red Nose Day</a>. The biennial event of the charity <a href="https://www.comicrelief.com">Comic Relief</a> raises vast sums of money for good causes. It also attracts millions of television viewers keen to watch famous people make them laugh – and donate cash. Red Nose Days have so far <a href="http://www.comicrelief.com/who-we-are/history/highlights">raised over £1billion</a>.</p>
<p>So how does Comic Relief achieve such feats of fund raising? Whether they realise it or not, the organisers have managed to tap in to several factors which, research shows, boost our desire to give. </p>
<p>To begin with, big events such as Comic Relief benefit from their own success, in that donating becomes a behavioural “normality”. We have a sense that everyone else around us – at home, at work, in our social lives – is doing it. When an act is widely considered to be morally desirable, as with giving to charity, there is also a strong sense that people close to you would approve of you donating. This is known as <a href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/casp.906/full">an “injunctive norm”.</a></p>
<p>But as well as being influenced by the actions and opinions of our friends, family and colleagues, we are also swayed by the behaviour of people or organisations we don’t know. This is particularly true if we <a href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1877042814029127">trust</a> and <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cFdCzN7RYbw">like them</a>. The celebrities and brands involved with Comic Relief may increase donations through this mechanism, too. </p>
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<p>Celebrities in particular are often well liked, so their opinions are considered <a href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1877042814029127">trustworthy and valuable</a>. Large, well established and popular charities such as <a href="http://www.oxfam.org.uk">Oxfam</a> supporting (and benefiting from) Red Nose Day adds an element of expertise, building the idea that giving to Comic Relief is a genuinely good way to help others.</p>
<p>The sense that everyone else is getting involved can also lead to people asking “Why not donate?” instead of “Why should I donate?” This change in the framing of the question we ask ourselves is more likely to result in the behaviour taking place. If we need to find a reason <em>not</em> to donate, giving becomes the default response. </p>
<p>Once we have decided to go ahead and donate, other people can influence how much we give. By regularly announcing (to cheers from the studio audience) the fund raising totals of individuals or companies, Comic Relief presenters provide a benchmark for others to base their donations on. They develop a sense of friendly competition over who can raise the most.</p>
<p>Obviously, it wouldn’t be Comic Relief without the comedy. <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10902-015-9672-2">Some research</a> suggests being in a good mood, in this case from laughing, leads to people feeling more generous and making larger donations. But even if the link is not so straightforward, it’s likely that mixing hard hitting appeals with comedy prevents viewers from experiencing empathy fatigue or “burn-out” and emotionally (or literally) switching off.</p>
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<span class="caption">Feel good giving.</span>
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<p>It’s an established finding from <a href="http://www.pnas.org/content/103/42/15623.abstract">neuroscientific research</a> that giving to charity activates areas of our brain which respond positively to rewards such as food, suggesting it simply feels good to give. Feeling a warm glow from giving could be enhanced if we are also in a good mood from our favourite celebrities doing something amusing. If we attribute this pleasant feeling to making a donation, it makes us more likely to give again in future.</p>
<h2>Raising money is funny</h2>
<p>One key reason for giving to charity is to have a positive impact on the people who receive the donation. It makes sense then, that the bigger the impact, the more we are inclined to give. A single donation to charity can sometimes feel like a drop in the ocean. But Comic Relief may also benefit from the fact that because they raise such a large sum of money, each person contributing feels like they are part of something bigger which will really make a difference. </p>
<p>This sense of making a difference is even stronger when we hear individual people’s stories, something Comic Relief does very powerfully with their moving filmed appeals. Having so many people in need could be overwhelming if it weren’t for the vast amounts of money being raised, which makes the viewer optimistic that the people featured in these films can actually be supported.</p>
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<p>And supported they have been – for over 30 years. Pointing out the psychological mechanisms behind our generosity is not meant to seem uncharitable. In reality, everything we do or think has an underlying psychological explanation – it’s just that most of the time we are not aware of it. </p>
<p>Giving to charity is something most people believe is a good thing to do. But for much of the year, our daily lives and worries get in the way of remembering the people who need our help. If behavioural norms, some comedy and a nudge of positive feelings can motivate me to actually pick up my smartphone and donate, then personally I’m more than happy to be influenced by all those funny red noses.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/74952/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jo Cutler receives funding from the ESRC. In the past, Jo has volunteered for several charitable organisations which could benefit indirectly from this piece through donations to Comic Relief.</span></em></p>Here’s the recipe that makes Red Nose Day such a successful fundraising event.Jo Cutler, PhD Candidate in Psychology, University of SussexLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.