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1 “Scroogenomics”: Gift-giving at Christmas Christine Pedersen Lesson Targeted to 9-12 Grade II. Abstract: In my standard English 12 class, my students read Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol. This small book, written in 1843, is a well-known classic: every student walks in the classroom door already knowing the basic story line of how Ebenezer Scrooge is changed by his encounters with the ghosts of Christmas Past, Present, and Future. The novel touches on many economic principles—everything from scarcity to opportunity cost to unintended consequences—but the idea of utility, how we measure happiness or satisfaction, is explicitly explored in the novel. The basic question of the novel is one I want each of my students to ponder: “How should we live, at Christmas and all year around, in order to have a happy and satisfying life?” Scrooge’s initial answer to this question and his evaluation of the utility of celebrating Christmas changes over the course of the novel. My goal is to get the students to think about how they personally want to “keep Christmas” or, in economic terms, how to maximize their utility in life, and at Christmas. When I have my students write a list of all the ‘ingredients” necessary for them to have a “perfect” Christmas, family is the front runner. We then discuss the concept that one way to maximize our own pleasure at Christmas is to give our resources (time, attention, or gifts) to other people, especially people we love, and we look for evidence that Scrooge increases his own utility by using his resources (specifically money but also time and attention) to increase the utility of other characters in the novel. Of course, in our day and age we have something that Scrooge didn’t have: the ubiquitous gift card. As we explore the idea of gift-giving and utility in our own time, I have my students listen to a podcast called “Scroogenomics” while filling out a guided listening form. After we’ve heard the economist explain that the gift that gives the most utility is cash, we debate whether ‘cold hard cash’ is truly a “humbug” that goes against the spirit of Christmas, and whether gift cards are any better and why. Anchoring the text in real life is a great way to make both literature and economics come alive. Students loved listening to a podcast that focused on something as practical as what makes the best Christmas present, and everyone had a position on “Scroogenomics.” Looking at the choices Scrooge makes as the same choices they face every Christmas and, indeed, every day, helped the story they’ve known forever feel fresh and relevant. III. Economics Content and Key Concepts: Economics: “A social science that studies how individuals, governments, firms and nations make choices on allocating scarce resources to satisfy their unlimited wants.” http://www.investopedia.com/terms/e/economics.asp

2 Utility: “In microeconomics, happiness is measured by a concept called utility. The standard unit of measurement that microeconomics uses to measure utility is called the util…. [which] has no concrete numerical value like an inch or a centimeter. It is merely an arbitrary, subjective and convenient way to assign value to consumer choices and to measure the consumer utility or utils of one choice against another choice.” http://www.investopedia.com/university/microeconomics/microeconomics2.asp IV. Economic Standards and Student Learning Outcomes: Standard of Learning EPF.11 (f) The student will demonstrate knowledge of planning for living and leisure expenses by f) evaluating discretionary spending decisions. Student will be able to: Define utility and use it as a measure of happiness or satisfaction. Compare the financial and social advantages and disadvantages of purchasing a gift, versus a gift card, or giving cash for both the giver and the receiver Student will know: humans seek to maximize utility; efficiency and utility are not synonymous. Student will understand: that we balance competing desires, that scarcity exists, and that there may be a trade-off between efficiency and meeting social and interpersonal expectations when purchasing a gift, buying a gift card, or giving cash. V. Instructional Process: At the start of the unit, I made a Google form to collect the students’ ideas of what makes a “perfect” Christmas. The students use the ideas they generated to make individual Wordles (a visual word cloud) and I collect all their ideas for a perfect Christmas into a class Wordle that shows our ideas in the aggregate. One key feature of Wordle is that the more times a word is used, the larger it appears —so larger words indicate consensus. We use the Wordle as a jumping off place to discuss how Scrooge’s idea of Christmas at the beginning of the book differs so much from our Wordle but, by the end, his vision of the perfect Christmas matches ours. . To explain the idea of utility and how it is measured, the students complete a worksheet that defines utility as an economic term and then applies that definition by looking at Scrooge’s encounter with in the ghost of Christmas Past, and his view of the value of Fezziwig’s party, and comparing Scrooge’s own changing estimation of the utility of a paid holiday at Christmas for his clerk, Bob Cratchit.

3 After discussing how giving presents can make you feel as good—or even better—than getting them, we talk about what kinds of gifts we like to receive, and how gifts can sometimes be disappointing. We also ponder why – if it is truly “the thought that counts”—giving cash as a present is taboo in our society. After a discussion about whether they like cash as a gift, and how they feel about gift cards, I have the students open the link to the listening guide and transcript for the 7 minute podcast “Scroogenomics.” Just the allusion in the title makes them excited, because they understand the reference! We then listen to the podcast on “Scroogenomics,” which argues that giving cash offers the most utility to the receiver. As a class we go over the answers and discuss whether giving cash is even in the spirit of gift-giving, and why or why not. In general, the conclusion was that cash is more useful, but giving and receiving a well-chosen gift was more personal and made the two people involved feel closer and more connected—which is the heart of Christmas spirit. . VI. Evaluation of Student Learning: The completion of the Wordle, the utility worksheet, and the listening guide, along with the student’s participation in the discussion of the podcast, revealed the student’s level of understanding and engagement. We compared this work to Ayn Rand’s Anthem which, despite its surfaces differences, is also a novel that explores a man’s struggle to answer the question “What is the best way for me to live my life to maximize my own utility?” My students’ ability to compare Scrooge’s journey with Prometheus’ journey indicates they have understood the big concepts from their novel study. Dickens and Rand come to different conclusions, but the significant thing is that both authors (different nationalities, genders, and centuries) are asking this important question. My students understand that it is a question worthy of being asked, even though there may be no single “right” answer. It is this spirit of inquiry which is the true key to learning.

4 Appendix: A. Resources: Investopedia.: http://www.investopedia.com/ [http://www.investopedia.com/university/microeconomics/microeconomics2.asp] Dickens, Charles. A Christmas Carol. New York: Penguin Group, 2008. Wordle: Beautiful Word Clouds http://www.wordle.net “Is Gift-Giving Bad for the Economy?” NPR Podcast http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=120844592 “Unwrapping Gift Card. Know the Terms and Avoid Surprises.” Pub. # 6144. CFPB. 2013 B. Handouts, Worksheets, and Links: 1) Visualize Your Perfect Christmas!: Making a Wordle https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B8o9RqThEVOFU1BGNkwxSlh3dUE/edit?usp=sharing [Teacher Tip: Students MUST save their word string. Wordle does not retain any information, and the student will get frustrated if she has to type it twice.] 2) Google form for collecting all the students’ word strings. Live Form: https://docs.google.com/a/henrico.k12.va.us/forms/d/1FUsfybyvwZ8K2m4J7K1zY2ep_HKk-Bb7oggml5eI6NI/viewform Responses for one class section (Spreadsheet): https://docs.google.com/a/henrico.k12.va.us/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0Aso9RqThEVOFdGRldnZMSVE0aFBuSFJCMzc2TlYzUWc&usp=drive_web#gid=0 [Teacher Tip: You can go a step further and make a Wordle that represents all sections of your class, and print it in color. This is a fun and decorative addition to put on your bulletin board!] 3) Wordle website: http://www.wordle.net/ 4) Wordle examples (scanned in—Wordle does not retain information) https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B8o9RqThEVOFN1hYV1FHMmVvbEE/edit?usp=sharing https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B8o9RqThEVOFTHNsV0p5cGdlemc/edit?usp=sharing 5) Utils of A Christmas Carol Worksheet https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B8o9RqThEVOFdU9kTnNabHFZeVU/edit?usp=sharing 6) Utils of A Christmas Carol Answer Sheet https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B8o9RqThEVOFTGJuaVJYQi04RlE/edit?usp=sharing

5 7) Utility: samples of student work https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B8o9RqThEVOFOVNwQnRya3N3ZGs/edit?usp=sharing https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B8o9RqThEVOFSEtNTVVfN0VEUlE/edit?usp=sharing https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B8o9RqThEVOFWW1wTGhLNlRHRkk/edit?usp=sharing https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B8o9RqThEVOFV0FPTHRycHNkN00/edit?usp=sharing 8) Scroogenomics: Is Gift-Giving Bad for the Economy? http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=120844592 9) Scroogenomics guided listening https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B8o9RqThEVOFcjZta29YN192Vnc/edit?usp=sharing 10) Scroogenomics answer sheet (key) https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B8o9RqThEVOFVzh2RW1OU3lfNDA/edit?usp=sharing 11) Scroogenomics: samples of student work https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B8o9RqThEVOFN0ZPYmdMNW5kZzA/edit?usp=sharing https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B8o9RqThEVOFLV80MG5mVHlYUms/edit?usp=sharing

6 ************************************************************************** WORDLE ************************************************************************** REFERENCE #1 Visualize Your Perfect Christmas! For this journal entry, you will be making a visual word cloud of your perfect Christmas. 1. Go to Microsoft Word and type in everything you would need to have a perfect Christmas. Type the most important things the most times—Wordle responds to quantity! Be sure you are using the ~ to keep it all together (e.g. candy~canes OR Christmas~carols OR kisses~under~the~mistletoe OR visit~to~Christmas~Town) 2. Copy all your text. 3. Go to SchoolSpace and paste your word string into the text box. Submit your form. 4. Go to Wordle.net, choose “create” and paste all your words into the first text box. Select your font and other features, then press”Go.” Enjoy your Wordle! Print a copy if you want! (It’s even prettier on a color printer). ***************************************************************************** UTILS ***************************************************************************** REFERENCE #5 WORKSHEET: Utils of A Christmas Carol The passage below, taken from www.investopedia.com, explains the way economists measure happiness. When you are finished reading, answer the questions after the article to apply what you have learned to Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol.” http://www.investopedia.com/university/microeconomics/microeconomics2.asp Microeconomic Assumptions

7 A basic assumption of microeconomics is that because a consumer does not have an unlimited budget, his or her available cash for spending must be judiciously allocated for maximum benefit. Microeconomics also supposes that individual consumers make their buying decisions in an effort to obtain the most happiness at the least cost - in other words, maximizing happiness or benefit. Happiness, of course, cannot be quantified. But there are methods and assumptions in the microeconomics tool box for calculating a reasonable approximation of this elusive concept. In microeconomics, happiness is measured by a concept called utility. The standard unit of measurement that microeconomics uses to measure utility is called the util. (To learn more, read Economics Basics: Utility.) Utils and Utility The util has no concrete numerical value like an inch or a centimeter. It is merely an arbitrary, subjective and convenient way to assign value to consumer choices and to measure the consumer utility or utils of one choice against another choice. As an example, a consumer may go to the supermarket with $100 to spend, along with a phantom 100 utils representing 100% of the happiness the consumer expects to garner from all the purchases he makes. Two-thirds of that dollar amount is spent on necessities - meat, bread, milk, produce and other food staples. Although 67% of the money budgeted for purchases is spent on food stuffs, the number of utils assigned to those purchases - arbitrarily and subjectively - may only be 40. The remaining one-third of the money is spent on chocolate bars, ice cream, frozen pizza, soda pop and other unnecessary goodies. But the utils assigned to these purchases total 60. 1. What is a util (what does it measure)? 2. Review page 26 of “A Christmas Carol.” Of 100% utility, what percentage of happiness does Fezziwig’s party give young Scrooge? 3. Re-read Scrooge’s conversation with Bob Cratchit on the bottom of page 7 and top of page 8. How does the old Scrooge feel about the “utility” of giving Bob the day off? What percentage of utility do you think Bob Cratchit assigns to one day off? **************************************************************************** REFERENCE #6 1. What is a util (what does it measure)? A util is a measurement of happiness or satisfaction. 2. Review page 26 of “A Christmas Carol.” Of 100% utility, what percentage of happiness does Fezziwig’s party give young Scrooge? 100%--he is thoroughly delighted with the party, and he could not be happier or more satisfied. 3. Re-read Scrooge’s conversation with Bob Cratchit on the bottom of page 7 and top of page 8. How does the old Scrooge feel about the “utility” of giving Bob the day off? Zero—Scrooge hates having to

8 give up any of Bob Cratchit’s paid-for labor. What percentage of utility do you think Bob Cratchit assigns to one day off? 100%--he is completely satisfied and happy to have a paid day off from work. 4. Is giving a party or celebration worth the money spent? It does not last, so is it a waste? Explain your answer, first from Ebenezer Scrooge’s perspective in Stave I, and then from his perspective in Stave II. Ephemeral things still have value; intangible things often have higher value than material goods. In Stave I, Scrooge think spending money on a party is wasteful; he doesn’t even buy good food for himself. But in Stave II, he remembers how much he enjoyed Fezziwig’s party and he starts to change the way he values a celebration. Which way do you feel? Or are you somewhere in the middle? Explain. [Answers will vary but may include that celebrations are worthwhile, as long as people stay within what they can afford.] **************************************************************************** SCROOGENOMICS **************************************************************************** REFERENCE #8 TRANSCRIPT of “Is Gift-Giving Bad for the Economy?” Podcast Copyright © 2009 NPR. For personal, noncommercial use only. See Terms of Use. For other uses, prior permission required. JENNIFER LUDDEN, host: I'm Jennifer Ludden, and this is TELL ME MORE from NPR News. Michel Martin is away. Coming up, our own day-after Thanksgiving tradition here at NPR. It's part of the StoryCorps project. We'll take some time for the National Day of Listening. But first it's here, ready or not, the start of the holiday shopping season. The decorations are up. There are giant sale ads in the paper and that music in the mall. But one man suggests you think twice before heading out to buy that cute thingamabob for your cousin's girlfriend. Joel Waldfogel is the chair of business and public policy at the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School, and his new book is about the economics of gift giving. It's called �Scroogenomics: Why You Shouldn't Buy Presents for the Holidays.� Waldfogel joins us from member station KUOW in Seattle. Hi, there. Mr. JOEL WALDFOGEL (Author, �Scroogenomics: Why You Shouldn't Buy Presents for the Holidays�): Hello. LUDDEN: So on a personal level, I'm all for saving money. But for society, can you explain what is it about holiday spending that doesn't make economic sense.

9 Mr. WALDFOGEL: Well, sure. And by the way, I'm not against spending, just sloppy spending. So normally when I go out and shop for myself, I'll only buy something that costs $50 if it's worth at least $50 to me. So with normal spending, outside of the gift-giving context, spending provides some rough measure of satisfaction. When I'm buying gifts, it works very differently. Now, I'm at a huge disadvantage when I set out to spend $50 on you, because I don't know what you like, and I don't what you already have. So I could spend $50 and buy something that's worth nothing to you. So the problem with gift spending is that it just tends not to produce nearly as much satisfaction per dollar spent as regular spending. LUDDEN: You take a look back in history at how Christmas gift giving has changed over the generations. I mean, did we use to be better at this? Mr. WALDFOGEL: I mean, I certainly went into this project thinking that our generation, you know, had invented sex and holiday spending. But it turned out that really neither is true. If you look back at the data as far back as the retail sales data go, about 1935, even a little earlier, you see that the same pattern, the big jump in retail sales in December was there. And, in fact, the size of that jump - which you can kind of quantify as holiday spending - was bigger relative to the economy in 1935 than it is today. LUDDEN: In the height of the Depression. Mr. WALDFOGEL: Well, that's right. But even taking out the Depression, I mean, just the last three generations, the economy has grown in the U.S. by about a factor of five. Holiday spending, measured the way I describe, has grown by about a factor of three. So we've gotten a lot richer, but we haven't allocated proportionately more resources to gift giving. We've allocated proportionately less which, by the way, suggests that holiday gift giving is a necessity, not a luxury. LUDDEN: So what do you recommend? What is the perfect way to do your holiday gift giving? Mr. WALDFOGEL: Well, although on average gifts generate 20 percent less satisfaction than items we buy for ourselves, it's also true, though, that different givers create different amounts of missing satisfaction. Folks who know us well or in frequent contact with us, they do pretty well, whereas folks who don't know us as well, their gifts really miss the mark. So my first suggestion would be for people you know well and for whom you have some good reason to choose a gift, go ahead and keep doing what you're doing, and it's especially important to keep giving gifts to kids who would be devastated if they didn't get them. But for other people, people for whom we are obliged to give gifts but whose preferences we really don't know, for them we ought to do something different to avoid destroying value. LUDDEN: Such as?

10 Mr. WALDFOGEL: Well, in principle, an answer would be to give cash, but of course that's a crazy answer because people think� LUDDEN: Oh, so rude. Mr. WALDFOGEL: Exactly. And it's awkward. It's really a socially impermissible gift, but something that's a lot like cash in the sense that it allows the recipient to choose which item he or she will actually consume is a gift card. LUDDEN: Right. Mr. WALDFOGEL: So gift cards have become enormously popular in the last 15 years, and they really do allow recipients to do choose and it also seems to avoid the stigma of giving cash. LUDDEN: So we are our own best gift choosers? Mr. WALDFOGEL: I think that's right. I mean, after all it's a really basic tenet of economics that, you know, that the consumer is best situated to choose for him or herself. That's frankly the basis of many economists disdain for government. Because after all, when government chooses for us, they get us the wrong health care program, the wrong color shirt, the bridge to nowhere. And so this notion that we're best situated to choose for ourselves is a pretty basic notion and fairly a common sense one. LUDDEN: Although, there is this argument in this economic downturn that if people had more money in their pockets, they could go out and spend and that would stimulate the economy. But you suggest that's not necessarily the best solution. Mr. WALDFOGEL: Well, you know, spending is always good for sellers, because sellers always get the price in excess to their costs and therefore some profit. But there are buyers and sellers in every transaction. And again, the problem with spending on holiday gifts is that the buyers don't necessarily get something more valuable than the price. And they certainly don't get something, on average, more valuable than what they could have purchased with the same amount of money. LUDDEN: But if we have all that unwanted clothing and knickknacks and whatever sitting in our closet and maybe we pass it on to charity. I don't know. It's been rung up at the cash register. It shows up in the, you know, little reports that come out and show how the economy is booming. And then we have to go out and buy something that we really like, so then in it makes it even more of an economic stimulus. Mr. WALDFOGEL: That's true. I mean, after all, we all want to do something meaningful with our lives. If we have some big chunk of people in the economy making stuff that get stuck in closets and never used,

11 that really sounds like a waste of resources to me. That's really kind of unfortunate. It's a complete waste. LUDDEN: So you're for efficient gift giving. Mr. WALDFOGEL: That's right, I am. And now, I should get on, finish the little bit about the gift cards. You know, they are nice in the sense that they allow the recipient to choose what item he or she will consume. But I do have a misgiving about gift cards. About 10 percent of the balances on gift cards never gets redeemed. And, you know, so it ends up going over to the retailer. Now, that's probably not what the givers had in mind when they bought the card. So I do have to this wide-eyed suggestion. Wouldn't be nice if retailers issued gift cards perhaps alongside gifting gift cards, but the new gift cards would default to charity after 24 months. LUDDEN: What a great idea. How's this whole theory of thoughtful gift giving, I guess, how is it going down with your whole family. Mr. WALDFOGEL: Well, since I know my family pretty well, I try to pay attention to my wife and my kids during the year. This doesn't really affect us. I think a big change in what I experienced, though, is that many others, including my family, are reluctant to buy me gifts. (Soundbite of laughter) LUDDEN: Joel Waldfogel is the author of �Scroogenomics: Why You Shouldn't Buy Presents for the Holidays.� And he joined us from member station KUOW in Seattle. Thanks so much. Mr. WALDFOGEL: thank you. Copyright © 2009 NPR. All rights reserved. No quotes from the materials contained herein may be used in any media without attribution to NPR. This transcript is provided for personal, noncommercial use only, pursuant to our Terms of Use. Any other use requires NPR's prior permission. Visit our permissions page for further information. NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by a contractor for NPR, and accuracy and availability may vary. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Please be aware that the authoritative record of NPR's programming is the audio. ************************************************************************************ REFERENCE #9 Guided Listening/Question Handout SCROOGENOMICS: An Examination of Gift Giving

12 http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=120844592 Abstract: The gift-giving season is upon us, but before you go buy that festive holiday sweater for your great aunt, one economist asks you to think twice before you fork over the cash. Host Jennifer Ludden speaks with economist Joel Waldfogel who argues that holiday gift giving is an inefficient way of getting the right stuff to the right people Listen to the podcast above about “Scroogenomics.” Then answer the following questions. 1. Why are people at a disadvantage when it comes to purchasing gifts as opposed to purchasing something for themselves? 2. Was holiday spending bigger in 1935 than today or not? Does this suggest holiday giving is a necessity or a luxury? Why? 3. To which group is it more important to keep giving gifts? 4. What is the best present? Why do people often not give that? What do they give instead? 5. What is the basis of the economic point of view on gift-giving? 6. Who always benefits from this holiday gift-purchasing tradition? 7. What is some evidence that a gift card is not efficient? And what is the author’s suggestion about what should be done to combat that phenomenon? 8. Would you like to receive cash as a gift, or would you prefer a gift card or an actual present? What about a gift to charity in your name? 9. What kind of gifts would you prefer to give, and why? 10. From what you know about Ebenezer Scrooge after reading Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol,” is giving cash really a “Scrooge”-like approach to holiday giving? Defend your answer using specific evidence from the story.

13 11. Add at least two more items in each column of the chart below, based on the podcast. One example is done for you. Factual Content Opinions Intent Evaluation of the RELATIONSHIP Between Factual Content, Opinions, and Intent 10% of gift cards are not redeemed. The unredeemed amount of a gift card should revert to charity instead of back to the retailer after 24 months. To make people think about helping others instead of just “wasting” that money. Waldfogel uses the fact of unredeemed money on gift cards to make people think of it going to “waste”; is it really a “waste” for businesses to make a profit? This seems like bias against business to me. 12. Based on this podcast, was Waldfogel’s purpose in his book “Scroogenomics”? What do you think the intended effect of this podcast would be on the audience for this media message (NPR listeners)? ******************************************************************************** REFERENCE #10 SCROOGENOMICS: An Examination of Gift Giving ANSWER KEY http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=120844592 Abstract: The gift-giving season is upon us, but before you go buy that festive holiday sweater for your great aunt, one economist asks you

14 to think twice before you fork over the cash. Host Jennifer Ludden speaks with economist Joel Waldfogel who argues that holiday gift giving is an inefficient way of getting the right stuff to the right people Click on the link to listen to the podcast about “Scroogenomics.” Then answer the following questions. 1. Why are people at a disadvantage when it comes to purchasing gifts as opposed to purchasing something for themselves? People get a measure of satisfaction when purchasing for themselves, because they know the value of the purchase to them; when they purchase for others, they do not know the exact value that person would attach to the purchase. 2. Was spending bigger in 1935 (right after the depression) than today or not? (Larger) Does this suggest holiday giving is a necessity or a luxury? (a necessity) Why? Because people buy the same amount of a necessity independent of income which makes it a proportionally smaller part of your budget when times are good [e.g. you don’t use more toilet paper if your salary goes up] but allocate more money to purchase luxuries when times are good. 3. To which group is it more important to keep giving gifts? Children 4. What is the best present? (Cash) Why do people often not give that? (It is socially inappropriate)What do they give instead? (Gift cards) 5. What is the basis of the economic point of view on gift-giving? The consumer is best situated to choose for himself or herself. 6. Who always benefits from this holiday gift-purchasing tradition? The Seller. 7. What is some evidence that a gift card is not efficient? (About 10% of gift cards never get redeemed) And what is the author’s suggestion about what should be done to combat that phenomenon? (The balance of a gift card should go to charity after 24 months, instead of to the retail issuer, as now generally happens.) 8. Would you like to receive cash as a gift, or would you prefer a gift card or an actual present? What about a gift to charity in your name? Answers will vary. 9. What kind of gifts would you prefer to give, and why?Answers will vary. 10. From what you know about Ebenezer Scrooge after reading Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol,” is giving cash really a “Scrooge”-like approach to holiday giving? Defend your answer using specific evidence from the story. This approach is not really ‘Scrooge”-like, because he didn’t believe in giving ANY gifts (until after his transformation) and then he didn’t care about efficiency. 11. Add at least two more items in each column of the chart below, based on the podcast. One example is done for you. Factual Content Opinions Intent Evaluation of the RELATIONSHIP Between Factual Content, Opinions, and Intent

15 10% of gift cards are not redeemed. Most people do not give cash as a gift. There is a stigma attached to giving cash as a gift. From an economic viewpoint, it would be more efficient for people to be given cash to buy their own gifts. The unredeemed amount of a gift card should revert to charity instead of back to the retailer after 24 months. A gift card is a better alternative with less stigma attached. We should value efficiency in gift-giving. To make people think about helping others instead of just “wasting” that money. To improve gift-giving efficiency by allowing the gift-recipient at least some hand in choosing the gift, in a socially acceptable way. To make people think about giving gifts in terms of efficiency. Waldfogel uses the fact of unredeemed money on gift cards to make people think of it going to “waste”; is it really a “waste” for businesses to make a profit? This seems like bias against business to me. The opinion that a gift card is a socially acceptable alternative to cash is questionable and it still doesn’t change the fact that the gift receiver may not value the gift card at the same level the gift purchaser does. By pointing out that gift-giving has an economic impact, the listeners need to consider that, in some ways, it isn’t just “the thought” that counts. This makes us view our cultural norm from a different perspective. 12. Based on this podcast, was Waldfogel’s purpose in his book “Scroogenomics”? What do you think the intended effect of this podcast would be on the audience for this media message (NPR listeners)? Answers will vary but could include: Waldfogel wants people to stop being wasteful and to give more efficient gifts. Waldfogel wants people to understand that letting other people choose their gifts will bring more happiness and satisfaction all around. ************************************************************************************