First, they highlight a meaningful problem in gift ex-change—whereas givers believe that spending money on more expensive gifts is the key to eliciting feelings of appreciation, recipients do not agree. Instead, it seems that money can’t buy love, and givers would do well to buy a thoughtful gift, rather than a more
expensive one.
Second, our results suggest that gift-givers have a hard time putting themselves in the shoes of gift-recipients.
Thisfinding is especially noteworthy because people often play the role
of gift-giver and gift-recipient. Nevertheless, what is learned in one
role (e.g., receiver) does not seem to inform judgments made in an-other (e.g., giver). Finally, this work adds to a growing stream of re-search on misjudging others’ self-interest in social exchange ( Flynn
& Lake, 2008; Heath, 1999; Miller & Ratner, 1998).