Another result of this analysis is that people may
sometimes prefer to receive a gift in kind over a gift in
cash, again violating a simple principle of microeconomic
theory. This can happen if the gift is on a “forbidden
list.” One implication is that employers might
want to use gifts as part of their incentive packages.
Some organizations (e.g., Tupperware) rely on this
type of compensation very heavily. Dealers are paid
14 One bit of evidence that people on vacation adopt temporarily
low k’s is that all resorts seem to have an abundance of gift and
candy shops. Some of their business, of course, is for gifts to bring
home, but while on vacation, people also seem to buy for themselves
at these shops.