QotW4: I Scratch Your Back, You Scratch Mine…

“Thank you!”

This is what we say whenever someone does a favor for us. However for most of us, ‘thanks’ is just not enough to show our appreciation. We want to be able to repay the act of kindness in one form or another. So we perform a similar act, or we render services that will be useful to that person.

What is a ‘Gift Economy?’

It is not uncommon for people to have the mistaken notion that economy is all about buying and selling. Often, when people come across the idea of economy, they always relate it to money. However, not all economies revolve around actual cash. In the gift economy, money cannot buy you anything much. But something else can.

In the gift economy, people have the ability to exchange, instead of trade, products and services, without prior agreement. (Gift Economy, 2007) In other words, people can share their knowledge without any expectation of a similar action. There is no demand of reciprocation, or even a mere ‘thank you’. In a certain way, the sharing is done for the benefit for others; and no gain for oneself. The ‘gift’ can be anything. More commonly, it refers to the sharing of knowledge and information.

Status in the gift economy is not dependent on what you possess, but what you are willing to share. This makes sense. Nobody will be aware of the knowledge you possess, unless you share it. The more you contribute, the more recognized you become. Author Lewis Hyde recognized this attribute. In his book The Gift: The Erotic Life of Property, he states that “status is accorded to those who give to others the most”. (Pinchot, 1995)

Hence, the gift economy is also known as a forum for sharing.

The gift economy is increasingly prevalent in the World Wide Web in today’s society. There is no doubt that the gift economy is not something that is going to disappear anytime soon. Seeking information on the Internet has become second nature to most of us. We are unduly grateful to those who can provide the information that we are searching for.

However, most of the time we do not know the identity of those who have shared the information. It’s strange to think about strangers helping us. But essentially that is the truth. It is not uncommon in the gift economy for strangers to share information.

Motivations

Helping strangers? No way!

It is almost impossible to imagine a stranger who is willing to help another stranger. As it is, people are usually hesitant to share information with people they personally know. The certainty of the receiver’s anonymity makes it unbelievable that people want to share vital information with people who they might never know. (Kollock, 1999) So why would they want to share knowledge with strangers?

The most significant reason is anticipated reciprocity. The possibility that the receiver of the information would also share useful information can motivate a person to contribute. (Kollock, 1999) Another reason would be status. People who are recognized for their contributions would be credited for the information that they have provided. In certain communities, people will rise the ranks in that community in relation to the contributions that they have made. There are many motivating factors that urge people to share information. However, these two are the more prominent reasons.

Discuss Cooking

Internet forums are an example of online gift economies. An Internet forum is basically a message board or a discussion group where people of similar interests get together to discuss and contribute ideas. There are forums for many different topics. (Internet forums, 2007)


I have an interest in cooking, especially baking. I came across this forum called ‘Discuss Cooking’, which basically does what the name of the forum says – discuss cooking. It is a forum created for people to share cooking recipes, tips and ideas. (Exchange of information)

One interesting thing about this forum is the status each member has in this little ‘society’. As mentioned earlier, status in the gift economy is a reflection of how much a person contributes. In the ‘Discuss Cooking’ forum, status is as follows.

Less than 50 posts = Assistant Cook
Less than 100 posts = Cook
Less than 500 posts = Senior Cook
Less than 1000 posts = Sous Chef
Less than 2500 posts = Executive Chef
Less than 5000 posts = Certified Executive Chef
More than 5000 posts = Certified Master Chef

The more one contributes, the higher they are ranked, and certainly they seem to have more significance in the community.

Everyone in this community happily answer each other’s queries, no matter how silly the question may be. They do not expect any monetary gain from their contributions. In fact, they are contend with sharing their knowledge with others, and similarly gain knowledge from others as well.

The people in this community are basically strangers from all over the world, who are linked together by their passion for cooking. However that does not stop them from sharing specialized information with one another. With this forum, and other similar forums, the gift economy is certainly becoming a global gift economy.

Conclusion

I’ll scratch your back, and you’ll scratch mine, and all of us will be satisfied.

Resources

Gift economy. (2007, February 4). In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 17:01, February 9, 2007, from http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Gift_economy&oldid=105681971

Internet forum. (2007, February 6). In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 17:21, February 9, 2007, from http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Internet_forum&oldid=106013835

Kollock, Peter (1999). 'The Economies of Online Cooperation; Gifts and Public Goods in Cyberspace" Retrieved February 8, 2007 from http://www.sscnet.ucla.edu/soc/faculty/kollock/papers/economies.htm

Pinchot, Gifford (1995). "The Gift Economy" Retrieved February 8, 2007 from http://www.context.org/ICLIB/IC41/PinchotG.htm