Would this example be Balanced Reciprocity or Generalized Reciprocity?

parents pay for (gift) their child's college education while expecting the child to reciprocate by doing well in school and graduating.

I am leaning more towards generalized reciprocity since the exchange involves a gift with no real time frame for pay back and the value of this return isn't specified. However, the reason why I am not 100% sure is because in this example, the parent expects something more or less equal in return (which is balanced reciprocity).

Question

Haven

Social Studies

29 June, 17:04

Would this example be Balanced Reciprocity or Generalized Reciprocity?

parents pay for (gift) their child's college education while expecting the child to reciprocate by doing well in school and graduating.

I am leaning more towards generalized reciprocity since the exchange involves a gift with no real time frame for pay back and the value of this return isn't specified. However, the reason why I am not 100% sure is because in this example, the parent expects something more or less equal in return (which is balanced reciprocity).

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Answers (1)

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Karla Maxwell · Answer 1

You're right it's general because it's non-market and you immediately return something just as equal because you're graduating from school (hopefully a good one!) and moving on in life to attain successful lifestyle by aiming to get a good job.