A controversial question facing customers at almost every cash register these days is whether they would like to leave a tip.
Many Americans think tipping has gotten out of control: Is it discretionary kindness or relentless obligation?
A November 2023 survey from the Pew Research Center found that 72% of people think tipping is expected in more places than it was five years ago. Some businesses that perhaps in the past were not known for asking for tips, such as drycleaners and hardware stores, now are.
Tipping is not just about percentages on a screen.
Dr. Paul Wright, senior vice president for the Neuroscience Institute with Nuvance Health in Poughkeepsie, New York, says that with tipping, the brain releases feel-good neurotransmitters like dopamine and oxytocin.
“Tipping is very similar to when you’re doing a good deed,” Wright explained. “…Many people do it for themselves, and not just for the recipient.”
But many Americans are not feeling that dopamine hit.
In a recent June 2023 survey from Bankrate, two-thirds of Americans now have a negative view of tipping, and one-third feel it’s “out of control.”
There’s also that pressure of the so-called “guilt trip tip.”
Read more at CBSnews.com
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