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Keeping the Joneses from getting ahead in the first place: Envy's influence on gift giving behavior

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  • Givi, Julian
  • Galak, Jeff

Abstract

Past research in gift giving has largely treated asymmetries between the types of gifts givers give and the ones recipients prefer to receive as unintentional errors on the part of givers. In contrast, we show that givers sometimes intentionally bypass gifts that they know will bring the most joy and happiness to their recipients. Specifically, we demonstrate that givers dislike giving gifts that compare favorably to their own possessions, because they feel that doing so would lead them to experience envy and thus become less satisfied with their own possessions. Consequently, they instead opt for other gifts that are not superior to their own possessions and thus do not negatively impact their liking of their own possessions. Critically, givers sometimes opt for these alternative gifts even in cases where they know they are less preferred by recipients. Theoretical contributions and practical implications are discussed. (144/150 words).

Suggested Citation

  • Givi, Julian & Galak, Jeff, 2019. "Keeping the Joneses from getting ahead in the first place: Envy's influence on gift giving behavior," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 101(C), pages 375-388.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:jbrese:v:101:y:2019:i:c:p:375-388
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jbusres.2019.04.046
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Branco-Illodo, Ines & Heath, Teresa, 2020. "The ‘perfect gift’ and the ‘best gift ever’: An integrative framework for truly special gifts," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 120(C), pages 418-424.
    2. Wang, Le & Luo, Xin (Robert) & Li, Han, 2022. "Envy or conformity? An empirical investigation of peer influence on the purchase of non-functional items in mobile free-to-play games," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 147(C), pages 308-324.
    3. De Hooge, Ilona E. & Straeter, Laura M., 2023. "Don't tell me you are sorry with a gift: The negative consequences of apology gifts," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 70(C).
    4. Wu, Ruomeng & Steffel, Mary & Shavitt, Sharon, 2021. "Buying gifts for multiple recipients: How culture affects whose desires are prioritized," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 132(C), pages 10-20.
    5. Givi, Julian, 2020. "(Not) giving the same old song and dance: Givers’ misguided concerns about thoughtfulness and boringness keep them from repeating gifts," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 117(C), pages 87-98.

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