Offering a Gift
in
Gifts are
for everybody.
Gifts can be
offered in Cash and in kind.
Effects
People who
stop giving gifts lose out on important social cues, researchers say. “Who is
on your gift list is telling you who is important in your life,” Dr. McGrath
said. “It says who is more important and who is less important.”
But the
biggest effect of gift giving may be on us. Giving to others reinforces our
feelings for them and makes us feel effective and caring, Dr. Langer said.
For a
glimpse into the psychology of giving, researchers at Virginia Commonwealth
University recently studied gift giving by pet owners, finding that it stemmed
from a desire to make pets happy and offer gifts that would improve a pet’s
comfort and care. The research, to be published next year, may seem frivolous,
but it also gives insight into the self-serving nature of giving, since pets
can’t reciprocate, the researchers note.
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