This article looks at the giving of gifts in a social blogging network, LiveJournal. Ask a LiveJournal member why they give a gift and the answer, according to the author, is some variation on "I wanted to." But gift giving is arguably never so simple - and while the author avoids depicting th activity as ultimately self-serving, she does give it the function of "maintaining social bonds, constructing virtual identities, and ensuring continued presence of participants." This may be the result of gift giving, but not necessarily the cause. Sometimes, a gift is just a gift.
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