Today’s Good News: Americans Are Kinder Than You Think

It’s cool to be kind. And it turns out, despite what you might hear in the news, Americans are pretty good at in general. So as you model kindness for your kids at home, check out this new data from Verizon and Kindness.org: a first-of-its-kind academic research study to find out the state of kindness in the U.S.

People in all 50 states took part in the survey and most (86%) said they’d donate part of their liver to a family member. Nearly three in four would lend money to a friend in financial crisis and more than half would donate their vacation time to a colleague.

The kindest things you can do for others? Respondents ranked becoming an organ donor for a family member, pulling someone from a burning car and adopting and raising a family member as the top three. Other popular measures of kindness include covering a work shift for a colleague, cheering up a family member or calling a friend to encourage them.

You and your family can get involved in Verizon’s “A Call For Kindness” campaign by signing an online pledge, downloading kindness cards and visiting murals with encouraging messages around the country. And if you’re looking for activities just for kids, Kindness.org has developed a whole K-8 curriculum that teaches students to Learn Kind, plus a series of easy-to-use activities.

—Sarah Shebek

Featured image: renebigelow via Pixabay

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