I have spent a long time thinking about and looking for ways that people use to rationalize their own spending and not giving to those who are in need, and this is one of the most common reasons cited. While all my research and experience has led me to the same conclusion, that it's a bullshit psychological defense, when it comes down to it I lack enough hard scientific evidence that this is the case to really solidly prove it.

The article you posted is great, thank you for sharing. It's clean, well-written, and backed by an experiment, which is fantastic. Do you have any more material like this? On the other hand, does anyone who disagrees have any material to the contrary?