Your Brain on Coupons? or Clip and be happy

CGU researchers discover that coupons can make shoppers happier and more relaxed

Beat the stresses of life with a coupon, or two.

SOURCE

The study has found a solution for the challenge of creative gift giving: no more racking your brain for a personalized selection for your spouse. Coupons are even better than Christmas presents!!

“The study proves that not only are people who get a coupon happier, less stressed and experience less anxiety, but also that getting a coupon—as hard as it is to believe—is physically shown to be more enjoyable than getting a gift,” Zak said.

And heres me thinking I was just being lazy!!!!

Im gonna quote this when I get everyone gift cards for Xmas.

"No no, Im not being lazy or thoughtless, Im looking after your physical and mental well being"


Interesting article but ya gotta wonder, who the hell thought to do and paid for this study??

Originally posted by IkNOwSTuff
And heres me thinking I was just being lazy!!!!

Im gonna quote this when I get everyone gift cards for Xmas.

"No no, Im not being lazy or thoughtless, Im looking after your physical and mental well being"

Interesting article but ya gotta wonder, who the hell thought to do and paid for this study??

Who else, the gift card industry.

Something to be said for coupons.. one lady who started a website i think it's called www.couponmom.com... can show you how to clip enough coupons and using double coupons pay for 200 dollars worth of groceries - and you even get free money back!

Of course you have to be a bulldog about clipping coupons which will take a housewife the better part of her week to do and you have to access to a store that accepts double coupons with no limits ( use a double coupon on everything you purchase)

I am confused. So it makes people happier to receive a coupon? I know I personally enjoy saving money and at the end of the day adding up and seeing that I saved gives me a great feeling. But to give someone a $3 off Axe coupon, I just don't see how that would bring happiness to them.

Originally posted by AuntB
I am confused. So it makes people happier to receive a coupon? I know I personally enjoy saving money and at the end of the day adding up and seeing that I saved gives me a great feeling. But to give someone a $3 off Axe coupon, I just don't see how that would bring happiness to them.

edit on 24-12-2012 by AuntB because: typo

The story seems to misidentify gift cards as coupons. And that would make a lot more sense.

Originally posted by JohnPhoenix
Something to be said for coupons.. one lady who started a website i think it's called www.couponmom.com... can show you how to clip enough coupons and using double coupons pay for 200 dollars worth of groceries - and you even get free money back!

Of course you have to be a bulldog about clipping coupons which will take a housewife the better part of her week to do and you have to access to a store that accepts double coupons with no limits ( use a double coupon on everything you purchase)

edit on 23-12-2012 by JohnPhoenix because: Correct URL

Yeah, i know a girl who does this. She has a binder full of coupons, divided into particular stores and each store divided into particular departments. She has charts from each store listing what the current prices are at any given time, what the discounted price is, whether and on what days they offer double/triple coupons, etc. She plans out her trip to knock out all the stores on one day.

I asked her, seeing how much time she put into it, how she actually saved money, especially where TIME is concerned. When she showed my pictures of a her counters loaded with what she bought at the grocers--and paying only $50 out of a $300 bill, i was blown away.

A LOT of time involved.

But yeah, i think the article is talking about gift cards rather than coupons. Weird, i wonder who actually wrote the article. I can dang well bet that cashiers HATE people with tons on coupons, lol, and i see no reason why receiving coupons would generate any sort of pleasure. Gotta be gift cards, though, which makes sense.

You don't have to worry about if it will fit, if the person will like it, the person receiving it feeling the same, and that person can pretty much get what he or she wants. No crap-ton of bags to carry around, hardly any wrapping, etc. I bet the gift paper manufacturers don't like it very much, though.

Merry Christmas, folks!

Yes, I think you are correct that when the article says coupon it means gift cards. That make better sense. Though.. this article has caused great happiness and laughter. My older child got great amusement out of wanting me to give the young one a bunch of spaghetti coupons for Christmas.

Article paid for by the Retailers Association of America. A big percentage of gift cards go unused, the merchants are smiling anyway.

Originally posted by rickymouse
Article paid for by the Retailers Association of America. A big percentage of gift cards go unused, the merchants are smiling anyway.

I remember a few years back the government made the gift card industry stop putting expiration dates on cash value gift cards. Before that time, if you didn't use it quick enough you lost it. But the government stepped in and said, "if they are paid for with real money then they have the value of real money and cannot be cancelled for not using them by some arbitrary date.

@AuntB

When you save money, you get happier, simple

try it yourself : www.couponerstore.com...

Originally posted by AuntB
I am confused. So it makes people happier to receive a coupon? I know I personally enjoy saving money and at the end of the day adding up and seeing that I saved gives me a great feeling. But to give someone a $3 off Axe coupon, I just don't see how that would bring happiness to them.

edit on 24-12-2012 by AuntB because: typo

Of course they don't mention how UNhappy it makes the customers standing behind the person sorting through coupons at the cash register.