" Q. Surely you're not suggesting that something as inconsequential as a pen could possibly influence what I prescribe? A. That's exactly what we're suggesting. And the social science literature suggests the same. Gifts create relationships; they create obligation, the need to reciprocate (See Katz, et al). For this reason even small gifts can be disproportionately influential. Though many individuals, as well as most professional society guidelines make distinctions among gifts of small and large value (permitting the former while proscribing the latter), presuming that larger gifts influence more than smaller gifts, this distinction is probably baseless (see Dana & Lowenstein)." *********************************************** To temporarily stop your subscription: set lactnet nomail To start it again: set lactnet mail (or digest) To unsubscribe: unsubscribe lactnet All commands go to [log in to unmask] The LACTNET email list is powered by LISTSERV (R). There is only one LISTSERV. To learn more, visit: http://www.lsoft.com/LISTSERV-powered.html