5. Give experiences, not objects
If there's a golden rule of gifts, though, it's this: Give experiences rather than items. People who receive experiential gifts, such as concert tickets or a zoo membership, feel more connected to the gift giver than people who received material items, according to researchers from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. The giver and the recipient don't have to share the experiential gifts in order to get this connectivity boon.
However, a recent paper by researchers at Washington University in St. Louis and Seoul National University found that people fail to realize that experiential gifts are a better choice than something tied with a bow. Part of the problem, the researchers found, is that people hesitate to give experiential gifts to people they aren't very close to.
Getting people an experiential gift is actually a safe bet, Howell said. People who expect a material gift who get an experiential one instead report being satisfied anyway, his research has found. In contrast, those who expect an experiential gift but get an item instead are very disappointed.
Experiential gifts are particularly meaningful for kids, Pugh said. Doing something with a child builds memories that last longer than mere stuff.
"If gifts are about expressing and forging love, one of the best ways to do that is with your own time," Pugh said. "That will always be a really powerful gift."