Gift Selection for Easy and Difficult Recipients: A Social Roles Interpretation

Using interpretive techniques, we explore the meaning underlying Christmas shoppers' description of some recipients as “easy” or “difficult,” in terms of gift selection. We argue that recipients are described as such because they either help or hinder givers' attempts to express specific social roles through exchange. We identify six such roles that givers express alone or in combination to each recipient on their gift lists. These are the pleaser, the provider, the compensator, the socializer, the acknowledger, and the avoider. We discuss the implications of our findings and suggest areas worthy of further research.