| Prevailing research on gratitude suggests that the emotion functions to build social relationships, is best expressed through symbolic gestures, and is negatively impacted by obligation, however research on social class and reciprocity norms suggests that individuals from working class backgrounds might utilize and express gratitude in different ways. The impact of social class on the experience and expression of gratitude was explored in two studies among working and middle class European American participants. Through the use of vignettes, Study 1 revealed that working class participants were more likely to pursue reciprocating actions that were practical in nature, including comfort with payment as a return, while middle class participants preferenced symbolic gestures that built relationships and had strong negative reactions to impersonal returns such as money. Collecting real life examples of gratitude in response to helping situations, Study 2 supported the results of Study 1, showing that working class participants preferenced practical returns while middle class participants were more likely to utilize unique, personalized, symbolic gestures. In both studies, working class participants experienced higher levels of gratitude, even controlling for need and cost, and while also more openly acknowledging exchange norms, in contrast to middle class participants who attempted to disguise their fulfillment of these norms. Together these results suggest that gratitude functions differently in working class contexts, influenced by a general sense of need and materializing in the form of practical returns, while in middle class contexts, personalized gratitude expressions that help to build relationships take precedence. |
