Love Makes You More Selfish

New research suggests that closeness has an effect on how people buy gifts for others. The closer you are, the more selfish you get.

The friendly taking effect suggests people do not always take less from those who they are close to when taking, benefits the collective unit. Tu, Shaw, and Fishbach (2016) found supporting data where participants were significantly more likely in two different scenarios to pick packages that took away benefits from a close friend when compared to a distant acquaintance, in favor of a package that resulted in a greater total benefit.

In the first condition, participants were asked to pick one of two scenarios based on who they were sharing a ride with; a close friend or distance acquaintance. Participants were found to be more likely to act selfishly when sharing a ride with a close friend, picking a shuttle route that resulted in a longer ride for their friend and a shorter one for themselves, but shorter ride overall for the unit. In the second condition, participants were asked to pick between two flight packages based on who they would be going on a trip with; a close friend or distant acquaintance). The experiment also found that participants traveling with a close friend acted more selfishly and selected a package that resulted in higher earned rewards for themselves and none for their close friend, but higher earned points for the unit.

Based on these findings, it might benefit marketers to create bundle packages that appeals to the receiver of the gift, but with benefits that appeal to the buyer and the collective unit. Additionally, promoting packages as discounts or deals would be more effective in getting consumers to purchase gifts for their close ones as the savings are seen as a greater benefit to the buyer and the collective unit than the value placed on the item by the receiver.

With Valentine’s Day as the second largest gift giving holiday of the year, did you come across any marketing that took this into consideration? When you were purchasing a gift, did you fall victim to the “friendly taking effect” where you picked out something because it resulted in a greater benefit for both of you versus just the one?

Just remember, the next time you receive a gift and the buyer seems to enjoy it more than you, just remember, it’s because they love you and are trying to benefit the collective unit.

References

Tu, Y., Shaw, A., & Fishbach, A. (2016). The friendly taking effect: How interpersonal closeness leads to seemingly selfish yet jointly maximizing choice. Journal of Consumer Research, 42(5), 669-687.  doi: 10.1093/jcr/ucv052

Vedantam, S. (2016). Don’t be a stupid cupid! Hear how not to be a selfish Valentine’s Day gift. NPR. Retrieved from http://www.npr.org/2016/02/12/466512300/dont-be-a-stupid-cupid-hear-how-not-to-buy-a-selfish-valentines-day-gift