A new survey of fund raisers’ views of the climate for giving shows a drop in confidence from six months and a year ago, and an expectation that the slowing economy will have a negative effect on philanthropy.

The survey, conducted by the Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University-Purdue University at Indianapolis, is a semiannual study of nonprofit fund-raising professionals that measures their confidence on a scale of 0 to 100.

The results released today said the current Philanthropic Giving Index was 81.7, a drop of 6.3 percentage points from six months ago. The future Philanthropic Giving Index declined to 83.9, a 5.8-percentage-point drop from the index six months and a year ago.

Survey respondents reported that current economic conditions — higher gas prices, layoffs, corporate losses, and stock-market declines — were a serious factor for philanthropy.

“The percentage of fund raisers reporting a negative impact of the economy on giving has grown significantly … for some corporations and donors with lower or fixed incomes, philanthropy may be seen as a kind of luxury good,” said Patrick M. Rooney, the center’s director of research.

Higher-education fund raisers attending the Council for Advancement and Support of Education’s annual conference for advancement leaders last week had a more optimistic view of the economy’s effects on development. —Kathryn Masterson