What's one thing that distinguishes millionaire women from millionaire men? On average, they are more frugal, spending less then their male peers. On the other hand, they are more generous, giving 6.84 percent of their income to charities versus the men's 5.34 percent.

Thomas J. Stanley, a former professor who holds a doctorate in business administration from the University of Georgia, studies the backgrounds and values of the very wealthy. In this book, he concentrates on successful self-made businesswomen in order to show how they made their money and what they generally do with it. While some sections of Millionaire Women read like a how-to book, Part III is focused on philanthropy and it's full of statistics, anecdotes, and case studies that help one understand the motivations and concerns of this group. Stanley's earlier works include The Millionaire Next Door, a book that achieved bestseller status when it was published in 1996. In this companion volume, Stanley collected data on females by means of a survey conducted by mail in 2001; nearly 600 women responded.

Philanthropy is a major theme for Dr. Stanley and he continually points out how generous these women are compared to their male counterparts. Not only do these women give more of their income to charities, but they also tend to give more than three times as much to their family members, most often in the form of a forgiveness loan.

Holly Hall's article, "Power of the Purse" in the February 17, 2005 issue of the Chronicle of Philanthropy takes up the issue of how women have not been taken seriously by fundraisers. They are often not asked for sizeable amounts of money, and even when they are, they are almost never asked to serve on the board, even though as Stanley points out, they are much more likely to volunteer their time to an organization that they have given to.

Perhaps Stanley's research will help to change trends in fundraising, because one has to wonder why major charities don't ask for more involvement when nearly 70 percent of millionaire women have helped raise funds for local groups, such as their churches. Both Stanley and Hall think that part of the problem may reflect these women's frugal nature. Most keep a low profile, live in middle class neighborhoods, and donate anonymously, which tends to keep them off most fundraising lists.

There is already reason to believe that things are changing. Hall interviews Pamela York Klainer who founded Rainmakers, a group of female donors who are required to publicly announce their donations, because, "To be responsible, we have to acknowledge we have wealth."

For citations to additional materials on this topic refer to the Literature of the Nonprofit Sector Online, using the subject headings headings "Philanthropy —— women" or "Philanthropists —— women."