![]() We might forward chain letters because we don't want to ruin our friends' chances of reaping the potential rewards. Sagarin points out that this sense of responsibility usually seems to run just one way. Since chain letters usually come from friends or acquaintances, you're more prone to feel a certain sense of obligation to continue the chain letter and send it on to others." According to Sagarin, "We are definitely more likely to comply with requests that come from people we know and like. You know it's probably not going to happen, but there's something magical about the idea of it, so you do it just in case," says Walters.īrad Sagarin, a professor of psychology at Northern Illinois University and an expert on persuasion and social influence, believes people continue chain letters to avoid disappointing those who already are a part of our community. "In a way, it's like reading your horoscope in the newspaper or spending one dollar on a lottery ticket. "While this sort of anonymous community-building is not the most positive, it does provide people with a sense of intimacy, which can be soothing in times of uncertainty," she continues.Īnd then there is the hopeful, if somewhat unreasonably optimistic, aspect of keeping the chain letter circulating. Walters compares sending chain letters to the relative anonymity of making connections in Internet chat rooms. It gives you the sense of networking and communicating without the risk of rejection," says Suzanna Walters, professor of sociology at Georgetown University. "Participating in chain letters is, in a way, a form of creating a community. ![]() So, since the odds are high that you won't be getting any panties (or paperback books, according to another letter that is making the rounds) in the mail even if you send this letter to lots of friends, why make the effort to keep the chain unbroken? Most of us know that they virtually never work. The something-for-almost-nothing nature of some chain letters is very tempting. When I asked her how many pairs of lingerie she has received so far, she replied in a tone that was disappointed, but not really surprised, "None." (Now I really felt guilty.) "It seemed like I would see some tangible results from this one it wasn't just hocus-pocus." Just to be on the safe side, she sent the letter to more than six people, figuring some would drop out. "I thought the idea was cute, and it didn't seem like other chain letters," confided Number 1. She thought if she fulfilled the chain letter's request by sending on the undies, it would cheer up her newly single friend. She said she received the panty exchange letter from a friend who was feeling really down after a recent breakup with a boyfriend. She's a marketing and consulting professional with her own business, a husband and two little kids at home. She's not the kind of person who looks for busywork to keep herself occupied all day. ![]() So I called friend "Number 1" listed on the letter. I had to find out why she went to all that trouble. Some busy woman actually stood at the photocopier, filled out the letters by hand, sent them out in stamped envelopes and shopped for a pair of "pretty panties" for a previous lucky gal on the list. Plus, keeping this chain letter alive took more effort than a mere mouse click on the e-mail "forward" button. So bad luck or guilt weren't the motivators for this letter. Granted, this one didn't claim that your luck would be ruined for 1,000 years if you didn't send it on, and it didn't ask you to send money or coupons to a fictitious ailing child. Please don't be responsible for spoiling the fun and stopping the flow of pretty panties." Unfortunately, I knew that I would be at fault for ruining someone's amusement and the restocking of their unmentionables.Īfter I stopped chuckling, I wondered why we still succumb to the lure of chain letters. The unknown author urged me to "buy nice stuff and spread the karma. Of course, following the carrot came the chain letter's stick. An interesting carrot to get me hooked into the scheme. According to the photocopied missive, if I sent a new pair of lingerie (tags still attached, please) to the first name on the list, and mailed copies of the letter to six of my pals specifying the size and type of undies I desired, I would be showered with 36 pairs of beautiful and fun new underwear. Sure, I get them in my e-mail all the time, and promptly delete them, but I haven't gotten one in the mail since I was about 10 years old when my classmates and I sent chain letters to each other for summertime fun.īut this underwear thing intrigued me, so I read on. ![]() Standing alone in my kitchen, I laughed out loud in disbelief as I kept reading - I had been "chain-lettered" by a friend. "This is a panty exchange!" announced the letter that came from a woman I hadn't heard from in months.
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