Which country is most charitable? The USA -- and Myanmar

The United States and Myanmar are tied for the distinction of the most giving country, according to the 2014 World Giving Index, which looks at generous behavior.

The scores, measured from 2009-2013 and released in November, looked at 135 countries. They were compiled by the international organization Charities Aid Foundation.

The index is based on an average of three factors, including the percentage of people who donate in a typical month to charity, volunteer time and help a stranger.

Among the major findings:

•The United States is the only country to be ranked in the top 10 for all three areas of giving behavior.

•The U.S. score has increased from 61% to 64% this year.

•Myanmar's position in the index primarily comes from its high proportion of people — 91% — donating money.

• The index attributes Myanmar's score to "the strong Theravada Buddhist community within Myanmar, with its estimated 500,000 monks receiving support from lay devotees."

Another interesting finding is that women are more likely to give money than men, according to the report, but only in high-income nations. "In middle- and low-income countries men are more likely to donate," the report says.

Patrick Rooney, associate dean for research and academic affairs at the Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy, agrees that Americans are "very philanthropic."

Each year since the Great Recession, Rooney says, giving in the USA has grown at a fairly moderate pace. "The good news is that giving didn't fall off the map during the Great Recession. The bad news is as we've recovered it's continued to grow but more slowly than we hoped for."

Rooney says the USA is about 4% below where the country was in terms of philanthropy before 2007.

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