Coronavirus and tipping: Will the outbreak make us more generous?

Mr Zaragoza's business has dropped dramatically since the coronavirus pandemic hit the US. Right now, he has only had one cleaning job a day, and needs to take extra precautions including wearing a full body coverall, a mask and gloves, and washing every piece of his cleaning equipment before starting a job.

He's noticed his regular customers are tipping him more - something he's grateful for. "Many people tip me the equivalent of an extra hour's work because they know I don't have a lot of jobs," he says, adding that the tips have helped him pay the rent.
Meanwhile, Instacart said that customer tips were up 99%, and shoppers' earnings from tips had nearly doubled, since the start of the outbreak.

So what's motivating this generosity - and can it last?

Michael Lynn, a professor of consumer behaviour and expert on tipping at Cornell University, says he is not surprised that people appear to be tipping more than normal.

"One reason people tip is to financially help the service provider and the pandemic may have increased consumers' perceptions that service workers need financial assistance," he says.

"Another reason people tip is to compensate people for services - and the increased risk of working during the pandemic may have increased consumers' perceptions of what a fair tip is."

He adds: "There's a lot of motives behind tipping - some people tip out of a sense of duty, as a social obligation, or to get good service in the future - but the biggest motivation is to meet social expectations."

"Sometimes we behave in generous ways because we feel that, if we're living in a community where people help each other, we'll all be better off."

So, as we can see people understand seriously of this problem and they try to help each other for resolve this situation.
The kindness has more ways for spreading and we should provide it.

Materials: BBC news