Giving presents is also about showing you care, and that you know and understand someone. That's true in the home, which is one reason why choosing the perfect gift is so hard. And it's true in business as well. Companies use their corporate Christmas gifts to show they value their relationship with customers and partners.
But it's not all good. Gift giving can also make us feel insecure or cause bad feeling. Will we give too little, and receive something better in return? That could make us embarrassed or ashamed. Or will we give too much, and make the receiver of our gifts feel bad?
Sociologists and anthropologists have studied gift exchange for many years. Marcel Mauss was a famous sociologist, who, in the 1920s, studied a type of gift-giving festival among indigenous people in North America, called a potlatch. He found that the people at a potlatch try to 'outgive' each other, with more and more lavish presents, until eventually some people can't compete and give up. They lose face, and are left feeling subordinated to the gift-giver who 'won' the exchange.
At home and in business, the effects of the presents we choose this Christmas will last the whole year round.
Quiz 測驗 1. Who do businesses give Christmas gifts to?
Clients/customers and partners.
2. Which words mean trying to control the image which people have of your company?
Impression management.
3. Where do potlatches take place?
North America.
4. Who loses face at a potlatch?
The people who can't compete/who give up.
5. Is the following statement true, false or not given? Companies spend ￡5 million on corporate gifts each Christmas.
That's not given. We only know companies spend millions of pounds.
Glossary 词汇表 gathered around 聚集在（周圍） ruthless battle for一場殘酷的搏鬥 corporate公司（的） gifts禮物 obligation責任 impression management印象管理 showing you care顯示你關心（他人） value珍視，器重 insecure沒有安全感的 bad feeling感覺不好 in return（禮尚）往來，作為回報 ashamed（被）羞辱的 sociologists社會學家 anthropologists人類學家 gift exchange禮物交換 indigenous people土著民 outgive each other出手要勝對方一籌 lavish揮霍的 can't compete無法競爭 lose face丟臉 subordinated to從屬於，服從於
