FIRST CHOICE? LAST RESORT? SOCIAL RISKS AND GIFT CARD SELECTION

In this paper, we use a field study to explore why consumers choose gift cards in lieu of actual gift items. We focus specifically on consumers' self-perceptions and metaperceptions in gift-giving situations, including how these processes are linked to the givers' gender and the strength of the relationships between givers and receivers. Deriving support from the existing gift card literature, our findings suggest that reducing social risks is one of the dominant reasons driving people to choose gift cards; risk reduction is more prominent in situations when gift cards are a last resort, rather than the giver's first choice. Moreover, we find that when social relationships between givers and recipients are weak, givers are more concerned about meeting their own social needs than their recipients' needs. The implications and results of this study can be applied by retailers, such as when designing customized gift cards, and by academics, in better understanding gift-giving paradigms.