Self-gift giving in China and the UK: Collectivist versus individualist orientations

Abstract While research on self-gift consumer behaviour (SGCB) has shown evidence of the importance of this behaviour in Western cultures, particularly that of the United States, there is no understanding of self-gift giving in collectivist cultures. Given the self-oriented nature of this behaviour, research is required to address its possible differences in a collectivist society. In this paper, we use personal interviews with consumers to establish the existence of SGCB in China, and further to compare motivations for and the emotions associated with SGCB in positive-related contexts in the UK and mainland China, with a particular focus on the Chinese side. We also address the nature of this behaviour for Chinese participants. Findings indicate that SGCB is less self-oriented for the Chinese than for the British, and suggest that academics should reflect on the meaning of this behaviour in non-Western countries. Implications from these findings for practitioners are also presented. Keywords: self-giftsculture consumer behaviourChinese consumersChina Acknowledgements The authors would like thank the editors, particularly Maria Piacentini, for their helpful comments on the manuscript and also to acknowledge the useful and considered suggestions of the two anonymous reviewers.