Two out of three Americans said they donated money to charity this year, more than two out of five volunteered their time and roughly three out of four helped a stranger, according to the "World Giving Index 2011" report, released Tuesday by CAFAmerica.
As a result, the U.S. ranks highest in terms of charity among 153 countries surveyed, up from fifth place in 2010, CAFAmerica said in a statement. The findings were based on more than 150,000 Gallup polling interviews with members of the public around the world.
The 2011 report looked at three aspects of giving behavior of individuals in the preceding month, asking whether they had donated money to a charity, volunteered time to an organization or helped a stranger.
"In spite of economic hardships and uncertainty in the future, the American spirit is caring and strong, as these survey findings clearly show," CAFAmerica interim CEO and director of finance David Venne said in the statement. "The generosity of the American spirit expands beyond the U.S. with 5% percent of American charitable monies flowing overseas."
