The friendly taking effect: how interpersonal closeness leads to seemingly selfish yet jointly maximizing choice

This research documents the “friendly taking effect” in choosing consumption packages for the self and others: interpersonal closeness leads to a preference for a self-benefiting package when this package also offers greater total benefit to the self-other collective (studies 1-2). We propose that a friendly intention (i.e., concern for the total benefit) underlies the friendly taking effect; therefore, people both take more from and give more to a close (vs. distant) other when doing so offers greater benefits in total (study 3), and people are cognitively tuned in to (e.g., acquire, remember) information about the total benefit more when choosing a package for themselves and a close (vs. distant) other (study 4). Moreover, the importance people place on the total benefit mediates the impact of closeness on people’s preference for self-benefiting packages (study 5). We explore the boundary conditions (study 6) and implications for marketers of consumption packages (study 7).