Sentimental Value and Gift Giving: Givers' Fears of Getting It Wrong Prevents Them from Getting It Right

Summary

When choosing between a sentimentally meaningful gift and one whose surface attributes matched a recipient's tastes, givers selected the preference-matching alternative more often than recipients wanted them to. The researchers traced much of the gap to uncertainty: givers were less confident that sentimental gifts would succeed.

Key findings

• Across three studies, givers chose preference-matching gifts over sentimentally meaningful ones more often than recipients actually wanted.
• Much of the gap traces to giver uncertainty -- givers were less confident sentimental gifts would succeed.

Themes

• Thoughtfulness & Sentimentality

Used in these research topics

• What Makes a Gift Feel Thoughtful?