How kind is America? We commissioned an academic study to find out
Kentucky tops list of kindest states, as new research reveals the state of kindness in the United States
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BASKING RIDGE, N.J. - How kind is America? What are the kindest acts you can do for others?
As part of its "A Call for Kindness" campaign, Verizon worked with Kindness.org, a non-profit whose mission is to educate and inspire people to choose kindness, to commission a first-of-its-kind academic research study to find out the state of kindness in America. The results? All 50 states have a surprisingly high capacity to be kind - but only one state could be crowned the kindest.
The top 10 kindest states are:
Kentucky
New Mexico
Oklahoma
Georgia
North Dakota
Alaska
New Hampshire
Missouri
West Virginia
Wyoming
“We surveyed thousands of people from all 50 states and from all walks of life on what kind acts they would do,” said Dr. Oliver Scott Curry, research director for Kindness.org. “Overall, our research revealed a surprisingly high capacity for kindness across America, and the results across all the states were remarkably similar.”
Top takeaways from the research include:
The top three kindest acts ranked by Americans overall were: “Become an organ donor for a family member,” “Pull a stranger from a burning car,” “Adopt and raise a family member.”
The top three kind acts that you can plan ahead are: “Cover the shift for a work colleague,” “Cheer up a family member,” “Call a friend to encourage them.”
The average American would give up $6.40 if that meant a stranger got $10.
86 percent of people would donate a part of their liver to a family member
72 percent would lend money to a friend in a financial crisis
53 percent would donate their vacation time to a colleague
Join the movement
When Verizon introduced “A Call For Kindness” in November, we encouraged people to not only be kind, but to choose to do something kind for others. Here’s how you can participate:
Take the kindness pledge at verizon.com/kindness, where you’ll find a number of options for kind acts. Click Count Me In and share your act of kindness using the hashtag #ACallForKindness. Tag three friends to spread the word.
Download and share Kind Cards that feature an act of kindness you can do today to make a difference. New Kind Cards are added each month so you’ll always have fresh cards to share.
Visit a Kindness mural in your neighborhood, scan the QR code and post a selfie with it on social media using the #ACallForKindness hashtag with the kind act you plan on performing.
Tell your employer to join the movement. We’re looking for more partners to help make the world a kinder place.
“We want to do more than simply say kindness is important,” said Krista Bourne, senior vice president and president of consumer sales and operations at Verizon. “We want to show that every kind act matters and help showcase the tangible impact our kind acts can have. That’s why we’ve built a multifaceted approach to this campaign that leverages research, inspires people through art, educates people through kindness experts, and provides opportunities for people to quickly and easily choose kindness, no matter who they are or where they live.”
The art of kindness
Verizon is spreading kindness, one mural at a time, as we’re working with local artists to share messages of kindness through art in cities across the country.
So far, you can check out murals in Chicago, Denver, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York City, Raleigh, San Diego, Seattle and Washington D.C..
We have more on the way! Keep an eye out this week for murals popping up in Indianapolis, Lexington, Nashville, New Orleans, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Sacramento, Salt Lake City, San Francisco and more.
Partners in kind
We can’t spread kindness alone. In addition to Kindness.org, Verizon is grateful to be joined by the following partners who have joined the campaign to help make the country more kind. These include:
Beekman 1802 (Schenectady, NY) - Beekman 1802, a skincare company, believes There’s Beauty in Kindness™. In fact, they were founded on it. Through their kindness to skin, community, planet, and animals, they inspire kind acts across the board, and are thrilled to be partnering with Verizon on their initiative to make the world a kinder place.
Jerry (Palo Alto, CA) - Car insurance compare-and-buy app Jerry joins the #ACallForKindness campaign to extend kindness to its customers, employees and the communities where they live and work.
LIXIL Americas - (Piscataway, NJ) LIXIL, home to iconic kitchen and bath brand American Standard, makes pioneering water products that solve everyday, real-life challenges, making better homes a reality for everyone, everywhere. The past year has proven how much of an impact a simple act of kindness can make to drive positive change, and we are delighted to join in this campaign with Verizon to help spread a groundswell of goodness throughout our communities.
Riley’s Way Foundation (Brooklyn, NY) - At Riley’s Way Foundation, we are building a youth-led movement to create a kinder world by supporting young leaders with the tools, resources, and community they need to envision change and achieve it; we are thrilled to support acts of kindness across the country as part of Verizon's #ACallForKindness campaign.
Routine (Crown Point, IN) - Routine was founded by a wife and husband duo with one simple goal, use Trusted Ingredients and make them Convenient. With a focus on Hydration and Superfoods, we make your health; ROUTINE.
Russell Cellular - (Battlefield, MO) Russell Cellular is happy to participate in the new campaign efforts for A Call For Kindness.
Sambazon - (San Clemente, CA) - Founded in 2000, SAMBAZON, an acronym for Sustainable Management of the Brazilian Amazon, was the first Certified Organic and Fair Trade Açaí company in the world, supplying ethically sourced Açaí products from a closed loop supply chain to ensure its products have complete traceability and transparency from the palm of the tree to the palm of your hand.
The Quarto Group (London, England) - The Quarto Group publishes books that delight and inform readers, including Be Kind: A Year of Kindness, One Week at a Time by the founders of Kindness.org. We answered the Call for Kindness to join a positive mission that encourages kindness nationwide.
Wireless Zone (Fishers, IN) - Wireless Zone is proud to joining Verizon’s #ACallForKindness initiative. Our franchise owners and employees realize that even small acts of kindness can make a large impact on the world.
Uvii (New York, NY) - Much like Uvii, Verizon is stimulating societal engagement through mobile using video and text to create conversations and storytelling.
Victra - (Raleigh, NC) - At Victra, a core component of our work is our human connection to each other and our guests, and the Call for Kindness campaign recommits our team’s focus on kindness to encourage one another to participate in kind acts that make a positive impact in our communities.
Partners also include The Antidote, Capital One, Cellular Sales, TCC and Visible.
To join the movement and learn more about A Call for Kindness campaign, visit https://www.verizon.com/kindness.
