Researchers tracking how people share money and support each other have spotted a striking pattern: in societies where giving is common, people tend to live longer, regardless of national wealth.
The personality trait linked to a longer life
The quality in question is not brilliance, ambition or discipline. It is generosity – the willingness to share resources and support others, whether through private help or public systems.
An extensive European-led study, covering 34 countries and published in the journal PNAS, compared how much money people pass on to others over their lifetimes with average life expectancy and mortality risks.
Generosity, expressed through both family help and state transfers, was strongly associated with lower mortality and longer life expectancy across countries.
Researchers combined data on two main types of financial support:
- Transfers from the state – such as pensions, benefits and public services
- Transfers within families – money and help flowing between generations and relatives
The novelty of the work lies in treating those two streams together. Instead of looking only at welfare systems or only at private family help, the team measured the overall share of income that people effectively give away or redirect to others.
Countries where sharing is a way of life
The results were stark. In countries such as France and Japan, people typically share more than two-thirds of their lifetime income, once you factor in taxes, social contributions and private transfers to relatives. These same countries sit near the top of global life expectancy rankings.
By contrast, in places like China and Turkey, where less than half of lifetime income is shared, the risk of dying in the following year was found to be roughly double that seen in more generous societies.
| Country | Share of income typically redistributed | Mortality risk (relative) |
|---|---|---|
| France | More than two-thirds | Lower |
| Japan | More than two-thirds | Lower |
| China | Less than half | Roughly double |
| Turkey | Less than half | Roughly double |
This pattern suggests that a society built on robust sharing – whether through welfare states, family networks or a mix of the two – appears to offer its citizens a survival advantage.
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Why giving might keep people alive for longer
So what is going on beneath these numbers? The researchers argue that generosity influences longevity along at least two main pathways.
Support from others can cover urgent material needs and also reflects the strength of social ties, both of which are linked to better health and longer life.
Meeting basic needs
First, financial support helps people cope with shocks. A generous welfare system or a supportive family can step in when someone loses a job, falls ill or faces an unexpected bill. That safety net means less skipped medication, fewer untreated health problems and reduced exposure to food or housing insecurity.
Those material buffers act as a form of protection against the domino effects that can drag people quickly from a minor crisis into serious illness or early death.
The health impact of strong social ties
Second, generosity is often a sign of solid social bonds. When people give to each other regularly, they build trust, obligation and a sense of belonging. That web of relationships is strongly associated with better mental health, lower chronic stress and healthier behaviours.
Years of research have shown that people who feel connected to others tend to have lower levels of long-term inflammation, healthier cardiovascular systems and a reduced risk of depression. Being part of a caring network can also encourage individuals to seek medical help earlier and stick to treatment.
When the pattern doesn’t quite fit
The study did find a few countries that break the apparent rule. The United States and the United Kingdom, for instance, redistribute less than half of lifetime income, yet their mortality levels are comparable to more generous nations like France and Japan.
Australia goes further still. It records an even lower degree of income sharing than the US and UK, yet shows a higher life expectancy overall.
These outliers point to a complex reality. Generosity, as measured through financial transfers, matters a great deal, but it is not the only factor in play. Healthcare quality, lifestyle, inequality levels, education and culture can all blunt or sharpen the effect of how much people share.
What this means for public policy
One of the most striking claims from the researchers is that the link between generosity and mortality seems to hold regardless of how rich a country is on paper. Redistribution appears to matter “independently of GDP per capita”.
That suggests that how a nation uses its wealth may be as important as how much it has. A relatively affluent country that keeps most gains concentrated at the top could end up with worse health outcomes than a slightly poorer nation that spreads resources more broadly.
The structure of support systems – formal and informal – may be a quiet but powerful driver of national health.
For policymakers, this raises blunt questions about tax design, pension systems and family support policies. Schemes that foster intergenerational help, protect older adults and reduce the risk of falling through the cracks may do more than reduce poverty; they could literally save years of life at the population level.
How everyday generosity can shape your own health
This research looks at countries, not individuals, but it does echo a growing body of work on personal behaviour. Studies have found that people who regularly give time, money or emotional support to others tend to report better mental well-being and, in some cases, lower mortality risk.
Simple acts – helping a neighbour with groceries, volunteering, sending a small but timely financial gift to a struggling friend – can build a network that may support you in return when your own life takes a difficult turn.
- Regular volunteering has been linked to lower depression and greater life satisfaction.
- Older adults who provide practical help to friends and family often show reduced mortality risk, once overall health is taken into account.
- Feeling useful and valued can help maintain cognitive function and daily activity, both crucial for aging well.
Examples of “health-building” generosity
Imagine two 70-year-olds living on similar pensions in the same city. One keeps to himself, handles his own affairs and rarely asks for or offers help. The other is deeply involved with his grandchildren, contributes a small sum to a local charity each month and swaps favours with neighbours.
Financially, the second man is slightly worse off, as he gives away part of his income. Socially, he is far richer. He has people checking in on him, reasons to get up and out of the house, and a sense that others rely on him. If he has a minor stroke, there is a good chance someone notices quickly and calls for help. That kind of difference does not show up on a bank statement, but it can be life-saving.
Key terms and what they really mean
Two expressions run through this research and are worth unpacking in plain language:
- Redistribution: This covers the ways money flows from some people to others, through taxes, pensions, benefits or private support. It is not only about the state; it includes what happens within families too.
- Life expectancy: A statistical estimate of how long people are likely to live, on average, given current death rates. It does not predict any one person’s fate, but it tells us how healthy or fragile a society is as a whole.
When the study says that countries sharing a larger slice of lifetime income tend to have higher life expectancy, it suggests that long lives are not just a matter of medicine and genetics. They are also shaped by how willing we are, collectively and individually, to support each other.
For individuals, the takeaway is not that giving money guarantees extra years, but that building and maintaining generous relationships – backed, ideally, by fair public policies – can create conditions where longer, healthier lives become more common for everyone.
