(Press-News.org) Bridal registries might be efficient – sparing the gift-giver from hours of shopping and the recipient from having to return unwanted items. But that convenience may come at a cost: Where once the mom held great sway over selecting the intimate items that shaped the new household, now Target, Macy's and other retailers have taken over that role.
"Decades ago, the main role of the mother of the bride was creating the new home for the union of two families," says Tonya Williams Bradford, assistant professor of marketing at the University of Notre Dame. "By turning to bridal registries, we've outsourced to the marketplace the sacred traditions of planning and outfitting a new family space."
"For the retailer, it certainly has increased the revenue," Bradford says. "And for the bride and groom, there is a broader net for who can participate, because all that is necessary is to communicate the registry website to potential gift-givers."
In her ethnographic study "Orchestrating Rituals through Retailers: An Examination of Gift Registry" (with Notre Dame Marketing Chair John Sherry) recently published in the Journal of Retailing, Bradford examines gift registries as part of a larger set of wedding rituals, and the implications of retailers playing a central role.
Weddings are not only the union of brides and grooms in matrimony and the creation of new family units, but also a lucrative industry. The research shows that in 2010 an estimated $19 billion in gifts were purchased from registries by invited guests, making wedding industry revenues second only to those of Christmas.
And the cost lies in more than the price tag.
"Roles formerly held by parents and grandparents, we as consumers now outsource," Bradford says, "And we're happy to do it."
The study reveals a number of findings about shifting the once very personal ritual of gift-giving to existing squarely within the marketplace.
"There is stiff competition among retailers to be the gift registry destination," Bradford says, "but registries also have changed our social fabric. The notion of gift-giving used to hold much more sentimental value. Now, everything is pretty much purchased, and, sadly, many people don't put a lot of thought into customizing those purchases."
The study considers how gift registries in general have changed the act of gift giving, as well as family traditions associated with various occasions, from welcoming a new baby to sending a teen to college.
"We used to make beautiful gifts to celebrate the birth of a new baby," Bradford says, "Friends and family would crochet blankets and knit hats and booties. Now we simply shop a registry at Babies R Us."
There are ways to preserve a slice of lost traditions, Bradford says.
"For gift-givers, find ways to customize the gift you select from the registry—make it personal," she says. "For gift recipients, make receipt of the gift a ceremonious occasion. Don't just pick up the package from the porch. Be prompt and personalize your expression of gratitude, ideally on personalized stationary. Describe for the gift giver in detail how you intend to use the gift."
### END
Bridal registries replace matriarch with marketplace, new Notre Dame study shows
2013-02-27
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
Research suggests scientists have overestimated capacity of wind farms to generate power
2013-02-27
People think of wind as an energy source with few limits, offering an unending power source with distinct capacity advantages over sources that deplete, such as fossil fuel.
Yet, new research in mesoscale atmospheric modeling by UNC Charlotte's Amanda S. Adams and Harvard University's David W. Keith, published Monday in the journal Environmental Research Letters, suggests that the power capacity of large-scale wind farms may have been significantly overestimated.
With large-scale wind farms, as many as hundreds of turbines mounted on tall towers and connected to the ...
Linking insulin to learning
2013-02-27
Though it's most often associated with disorders like diabetes, Harvard researchers have shown how the signaling pathway of insulin and insulin-like peptides plays another critical role in the body – helping to regulate learning and memory.
In addition to showing that the insulin-like peptides play a critical role in regulating the activity of neurons involved in learning and memory, a team of researchers led by Yun Zhang, Associate Professor of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology, show that the interaction between the molecules can fine-tune how, or even if, learning ...
African-ancestry babies get less prenatal care in Brazil
2013-02-27
Low birth weights are more prevalent among Brazilians with African ancestry and may be attributed to less use of prenatal care facilities and where those ethnic groups live, according to a new study.
The study from researchers at the University of Iowa and health analysts in South America also suggests that infants of African ancestry, alone or mixed, were more likely to be born prematurely than those born of European-only stock. The findings could help policymakers decide how best to bridge the difference in infant health among non-European-ancestry races in South America's ...
NASA infrared data shows Tropical Cyclone 18S still battling wind shear
2013-02-27
An infrared look at Tropical Storm 18S by NASA's Aqua satellite revealed wind shear continues to take its toll on the storm and keeps pushing its main precipitation away from the center of the storm.
Wind shear is a major factor that can keep a tropical cyclone "down" or unable to consolidate and intensify because it keeps pounding the circulation of winds head on. Strong wind shear has been battering Tropical Cyclone 18S for a couple of days and is expected to continue the next couple of days.
On Feb. 26 at 1500 UTC (10 a.m. EST) Tropical Storm 18S was located about ...
NASA satellites see slow-moving Cyclone Rusty before landfall
2013-02-27
Cyclone Rusty has been moving very slow over the last two days on its approach to landfall near Port Hedland in Western Australia, and NASA satellites have observed the storm's increase in power. NASA's TRMM and Aqua satellites provided rainfall, cloud height and temperature data that showed Cyclone Rusty intensified as it neared land.
Rusty is a large storm and its slow movement means more rainfall, more flooding potential, increasingly rough surf and a longer period of tropical-storm-force winds along the Pilbara coast.
The Australian Bureau of Meteorology (ABOM) ...
Libertarian paternalism and school lunches: Guiding healthier behavior while preserving choices
2013-02-27
In January 2012, the United States Department of Agriculture passed a series of regulations designed to make school lunches more nutritious, which included requiring schools to increase whole grain offerings and making students select either a fruit or vegetable with their purchased lunch. However, children cannot be forced to eat these healthier lunches. In a new study scheduled for publication in The Journal of Pediatrics, researchers determined that small, inexpensive changes to school cafeterias influenced the choice and consumption of healthier foods.
Andrew S. ...
Study: Same-sex cohabitors less healthy than those in heterosexual marriages
2013-02-27
WASHINGTON, DC, February 21, 2013 — Same-sex cohabitors report worse health than people of the same socioeconomic status who are in heterosexual marriages, according to a new study, which may provide fuel for gay marriage proponents.
"Past research has shown that married people are generally healthier than unmarried people," said Hui Liu, lead author of the study and an assistant professor of sociology at Michigan State University. "Although our study did not specifically test the health consequences of legalizing same-sex marriage, it's very plausible that legalization ...
Brandeis University study finds public policy, institutional barriers are pushing racial wealth gap
2013-02-27
New research shows the dramatic gap in household wealth that now exists along racial lines in the United States cannot solely be attributed to personal ambition and behavioral choices, but rather reflects policies and institutional practices that create different opportunities for whites and African-Americans.
So powerful are these government policies and institutional practices that for typical families, a $1 increase in average income over the 25-year study period generates just $0.69 in additional wealth for an African-American household compared with $5.19 for a white ...
Studying the health of same-sex couples
2013-02-27
EAST LANSING, Mich. — Same-sex couples that live together report worse health than people of the same socioeconomic status who are in heterosexual marriages, according to a national study that could have implications for the gay marriage debate.
Research has shown that married people are healthier than the unmarried. Yet, while gay marriage is gaining support in Michigan and around the country, most same-sex cohabiters do not have the option of legally marrying their partners, noted Hui Liu, Michigan State University sociologist and lead investigator on the study.
While ...
Mental health-substance use services in hospitals up after parity law, finds new report
2013-02-27
WASHINGTON, DC —The Paul Wellstone and Pete Domenici Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2008 ("Parity Act") increased access to mental health and substance use services in hospitals, yet consumers continued to pay more out-of-pocket for substance use admissions than for other types of hospital admissions, finds a new Health Care Cost Institute (HCCI) report.
The report is one of the first of its kind to look at hospital spending, utilization, prices, and out-of-pocket payments for mental health and substance use admissions for those younger than age 65 ...