Virtuous Victimization and the Boundaries of Third Sector Ethics

Abstract

This article analyzes the phenomenon of virtuous victimhood in the context of crowdfunding, a method of attracting private donations in situations of institutional instability and a lack of regulatory frameworks within the third sector. Relying on the concept of the 'double signal' (Ok et al., 2020), the authors argue that demonstrating vulnerability alongside moral impeccability increases the legitimacy of seeking help and the likelihood of receiving resources. The study combines psychological and institutional perspectives, including an analysis of how nonprofit organisation representatives perceive themselves and how potential donors perceive the moral image of the victim. The empirical part of the study consists of two stages. In the first stage, a virtuous victimhood questionnaire adapted for a Russian sample (n = 101) was used. The results showed that employees of charitable organizations exhibited signs of symbolic victimhood, such as uncertainty about the future, a sense of being undervalued, and social invisibility, especially among respondents with longer professional experience. In the second stage (n = 409), the study employed an experimental design in which the degree of moral 'deservingness' of the character requesting a donation was manipulated. The results revealed that the greater the perceived virtue of the victim, the more willing were the respondents to provide financial support, and the larger the expected donation amount. The obtained data make it possible to interpret virtuous victimhood as a socially significant strategy of public engagement in the field of charity. The risks of its pragmatic use are discussed, as well as the need for institutional reinforcement of standards of transparency, accountability, and ethical responsibility. This article contributes to the development of an interdisciplinary research agenda focusing on the moral foundations of social support, trust, and legitimacy at a time when representative institutions are in crisis and aid distribution mechanisms are undergoing transformation.