Does personality affect gift-giving?

T he type of personality we have tends to impact an individual in many different ways throughout life. One area in particular that brings curiosity is does personality affect gift-giving? Gift-giving seems like such a simple task, however, there is a great deal of cognitive function that goes into carrying out the task of gift-giving. A lot of our cognitive functions are influenced by our personality. With that being said, there is something known as the gifting personality, where through giving gifts we can encapsulate our personality into the gift as well. To a certain extent, personality does affect gift-giving. There are many different types of gifting personalities and it is linked with a lot the personality of an individual and how they carry out tasks. There is a model known as the big five personality test. This model has 5 dimensions: openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism. Each of these dimensions is a building block of an individual's personality. Openness is a trait that deals with characteristics such as imagination and insight. Those who score higher on this dimension tend to be very creative individuals who are open to trying new things. With that being said, those are traits that can lead to having the gifting personality of giving gifts that may entail more creativity behind the gift. As well as, since people who score high on this dimension are open to trying new things, they may be more adventurous so they may give gifts that are not very traditional and can seem to be more abstract. For instance, gift ideas that would suit those who score higher on openness would be happy to give and receive gifts that would allow a new experience to take place, as well as learning something new. Those who score low in this dimension do not favour trying new things or dislike partaking in abstract concepts and/or ideas so they may be individuals who are more inclined to give and receive gifts that are more traditional and simple.

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The second dimension is conscientiousness. Conscientiousness is a trait that deals with thoughtfulness, impulse control, and goal-oriented behaviours. Those who score higher on this dimension tend to be individuals that are well organized, and mindful of details and plans. These traits can lead to a gifting personality that may entail more structure and thoughtfulness behind their gifts. Since people who score high on this dimension tend to plan, they are most likely to be the gifting personality that isn’t last-minute shopping for a gift, instead, they might have a thoughtful gift picked out and set. For instance, due to their trait of paying attention to detail, they may be inclined to buy gifts that are more personal to the recipient. The individuals who score low in this dimension tend to dislike structure and schedule and can fail into procrastination. This would impact their gifting personality as possibly being last-minute gifters, or failing to complete all aspects of their gift idea due to lateness and lack of structure. The third dimension is extraversion. Extraversion is a trait that deals with excitability, sociability, emotional expressiveness, and assertiveness. The individuals that score higher on this dimension tend to be outgoing and gain energy from social situations. These traits can lead to a gifting personality that may entail being social and outgoing. For instance, an individual who scores high on extraversion may give or like to receive gifts that allow their traits to be satisfied such as tickets to concerts or events, or any experience that consists of meeting new people or making new friends. The individuals that score low in this dimension tend to prefer to be alone and dislike socializing most of the time. Taking this into consideration, the gifting personality that these individuals may have is giving and/or receiving gifts that do not include a huge social circle. Ideally, gifts that allow them to enjoy their alone time.

The fourth dimension is agreeableness. Agreeableness is a trait that deals with trust, altruism, kindness, affection, and other prosocial behaviours. The individuals that score high in this dimension tend to be more cooperative, care about others, and have a great deal of interest in other people and their needs. The gifting personality that may entail those who score high in this dimension may favour giving and receiving helpful gifts. For instance, those linked with agreeableness enjoy helping and contributing to other people's happiness so their gifts may be more heartfelt, personal, and of assistance to others. Those who score low in this dimension have little interest in taking care of others and are not as considerate, so their gifting personality may be more transactional and less personal.

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The fifth dimension is neuroticism. Neuroticism is a trait that deals with sadness, moodiness, and emotional instability. The individuals that score high in this dimension tend to have a higher chance of experiencing mood swings, anxiety, sadness, and irritability. The individuals that score high on this dimension tend to experience a lot of stress and get worried and upset easily. The gifting personality that may entail for individuals who score high in this dimension may be those who give gifts to others with the addition of a gift receipt in case the other person did not like the gift and/or getting easy and simple gifts to avoid the stress of the gift-giving process. Those who score low in this dimension deal well with stress and are more relaxed, so their gifts may be more personal and exciting due to the traits associated with those who score low in this dimension.

The big five traits are a good model that helps indicate traits of an individual, as well as influence the gifting personality due to what extreme the individual may score on in the test. Personality impacts so much of our behaviour, actions, and thought process, as well as the process of carrying out tasks such as gift-giving. Understanding an individual's personality traits can help indicate what kind of gifts they may favour giving and/or receiving. Next time it's time to give someone a gift, consider their personality, it will help you get the best gift that would suit them.

Naseea Harun
Psychology Blogger,
The Shared Secrets Lab,
GiftAFeeling Inc.

Read The Official Research Paper On - Does personality affect gift-giving?