A new university study finds being asked to donate at cash registers heightens anxiety for shoppers, despite good intentions.
Interviews with 60 shoppers conducted by researchers led by Ohio University probing how they felt about being asked checkout solicitations found:
- About 40 percent expressed negative feelings associated with anxiety, such as feeling “pressured,” “annoyed” and “concerned about being judged.”
- Another seven percent conveying negative sentiments from a mental standpoint, including feeling “guilty” or “bad.”
- About a third were neutral, expressing sentiments such as “indifferent.”
- Only about 20 percent described positive feelings, such as “nice” or “compassionate.”
