Busy lives, time pressures and financial restraints often lead to thoughtless, last-minute gifts. Whether for an event, milestone or ‘just because’, intentional gift giving can be strongly beneficial for people’s minds at both ends of the scale. We look at the science behind this and how pharmacy assistants can help their community give intentionally.
A gift given with thought and purpose behind it can strengthen connections and mental health. When someone receives a gift with purpose that resonates with them or brings them joy, their brain releases the ‘feel good’ chemicals including serotonin, dopamine and oxytocin. And performing good deeds for others makes us feel more engaged, as psychologist Susan Albers told the US Cleveland Clinic, listing the physical and mental health benefits associated with purposely giving gifts.[1]
Additionally, researchers claim this can lower blood pressure and protect the heart, just as exercising can do. Studies from the American Psychological Association outline how spending money on others promotes happiness, and that when oxytocin is released, it’s sustained longer, unlike brief spans of the dopamine effect, which is also triggered during the process of giving a gift – for the giver – as it activates the same reward pathways as receiving a gift.[2]
Study results
A study was undertaken and published in the journal Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience involving participants pairing up and sitting across from each other to complete social tasks, which included some of the pairs exchanging a gift at the start of the experiment and the others exchanging gifts at the end. These tasks were undertaken to analyse how people felt at different points of the experiment.[3]
A questionnaire was given to participants at the end of the experiment that asked about their perceptions of their partner before and after the gift exchange.The study showed a strong relationship between gift donation where the role of empathy and positive emotions reinforced a social bond between the pairs, shown at behavioural and neural levels.
Tips for choosing a gift with purpose
• Try to determine what the gift receiver needs at this time.
• Try to determine what interests provide happiness for the receiver.
• Allow enough time to plan and shop for the gift.
• Plan to perform a service as a gift for the receiver that can make their lives easier.
References
1. Cleveland Clinic, 2022. ‘Why giving is good for your health.’ health.clevelandclinic.org/why-giving-is-good-for-your-health
2. Novotney A. 2022. ‘What happens in your brain when you give a gift.’ apa.org/topics/mental-health/brain-gift-giving
3. Balconi M, et al. 2020. ‘A gift for gratitude and cooperative behaviour: Brain and cognitive effects.’ pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC7137728/
This article was published in RPA Nov/Dec emagazine.
