Not all gifts are good: The potential practical costs of motivated gifts

Lara B. Aknin*, Dylan Wiwad, Yuthika U. Girme

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

4 Scopus citations

Abstract

People rely on support from others to accomplish mundane and momentous tasks. When asking for assistance, is it beneficial to incentivize a helper by offering a motivated gift (i.e., a gift with the hope of getting support in return)? Six studies (N > 2,500) examine the frequency and potential costs of motivated gifts. In Study 1, a third of Americans indicated that they had given a motivated gift at least once, while nearly two-thirds believed they had received one. In Studies 2a–d, most participants who imagined receiving a motivated gift before a favor request reported lower willingness to help and anticipated satisfaction from helping than participants who imagined simply being asked for a favor. Finally, Study 3 replicates these findings with actual help provided among friends in a laboratory setting. Findings suggest that motivated gifts are relatively common but may sometimes undermine the assistance that people hope to receive.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)75-85
Number of pages11
JournalJournal of Applied Social Psychology
Volume49
Issue number2
DOIs
StatePublished - Feb 1 2019

Funding

This research was supported by funding provided by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC).

Keywords

  • favor
  • gift giving
  • helping behavior
  • prosocial behavior
  • support provision

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Social Psychology

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