The Psychology of Gift Giving: Results

This quiz is based on research that was conducted by Francesca Gino and Francis Flynn for a paper in the Hounral of Experimental Social Psychology.

In various experiments they found a consistent pattern emerged and that there was a notable difference between what gift-givers thought and what the recipients did. It seems we’re not very good at appreciating other people’s perspectives when we’re asked to consider them, and instead we tend to overestimate the extent to which other people will think just like we do.

Q1. Would it be a good idea to ask me what I want as a gift?

Yes, it would.

People who imagined giving a gift thought it wouldn’t make any difference in terms of appreciation levels whether that gift was a surprise or something explicitly requested, but the recipients said they would appreciate a gift they’d asked for more.

Q2. Should you buy me something from my list or a surprise?

Something from my list.

When people were asked to recall a time they’d received a gift, those recalling having received something they’d requested from their list were more appreciative of it than those who received a surprise. But don’t worry if you thought it wouldn’t make a difference, most people who thought about a time they had given a gift thought it was appreciated equally, whether it was a surprise or requested on a list.

Q3. If I only mention one gift, should you buy me that or a surprise?

According to the research, most of you should have got this question right. You should buy me the gift I requested.

The researchers found that in this scenario gift givers were more likely to see that the recipient would be more appreciative of receiving the requested item.

Q4. Would it be a good idea to give money instead?

Most gift givers thought that money wouldn’t be appreciated as much as something someone asks for; they were wrong. Recipients said they would appreciate the money more than something they had asked for.

It’s worth considering that this research was done in North America. It’s quite likely that different values about the exchanging of gifts exist in other cultures.

But it’s interesting to reflect on how wrong we can be about what other people will value. It’s no surprise that rather than say, “I have no idea what someone else would value” we imagine that our assessment of what’s comparable as a gift will be perceived similarly by the other person.

I’ll tell the postman to expect some deliveries!

Philip Graves

Source: Gino, F., and Flynn, F. (2011). Give them what they want: The benefits of explicitness in gift exchange. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 47 (5), 915-922 DOI: 10.1016/j.jesp.2011.03.015