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Why Feasibility Matters More to Gift Receivers than to Givers: A Construal-Level Approach to Gift Giving

Baskin, E., Wakslak, C. J., Trope, Y., & Novemsky, N. (2014). Journal of Consumer Research, 41(1), 169–182. DOI: 10.1086/675737.

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Summary

Examines the tradeoff between a gift's desirability (how appealing it sounds) and its feasibility (how convenient or practical it actually is to use), finding that givers place relatively more weight on desirability while recipients place relatively more weight on feasibility.

Key findings

  • Gift givers tend to weigh a gift's desirability more heavily than its feasibility.
  • Gift recipients tend to weigh a gift's feasibility (practicality, convenience, real-life fit) more heavily than givers expect.

GiftNav takeaway

Weigh practicality and real-life fit -- schedule, space, convenience -- alongside how exciting or impressive a gift sounds; recipients tend to value the practical side more than givers assume.

Themes

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Last reviewed September 14, 2026.

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