Intergenerationally Gifted Asset Dispositions

Abstract

This study examines the mechanisms by which intergenerationally gifted assets are transformed into inalienable wealth and describes how such gifts convey and transfer meaning within families. The study's findings reveal that individuals employ indexical accounts to allocate assets in support of relational goals and employ prosaic accounts to achieve utilitarian goals. These findings contribute to inter-generational gifting theories by demonstrating how an asset transitions between inalienable and alienable states, identifying antecedents and consequences of pro-saic and indexical accounts, explaining the interactions between inalienable and alienable states and between indexical and prosaic account allocations, and dis-cussing the implications of labeled assets on consumer behavior. My grandma's getting older.... "You know what? I'm just going to give each [of my grandchildren] a thousand dollars. "... I was like, "Grandma, I love you. "... I literally opened up and started crying. I was so happy.... Me and my brother, who really neede