For some people, Christmas parties are exciting social events since they get to meet with their friends and relatives whom they haven't seen for a very long time.
But, for others, these social gatherings are a drag, especially to those who just want to spend their Christmas alone; cozy in their pajamas while seeping hot coffee and watching their favorite movies.
If you are one of them, then you already know how hard it is to decline Christmas party invitations because you can disappoint or even anger hosts.
But, a new study revealed that Christmas party hosts/organizers don't really mind if you decline their invitations.
Christmas Party Hosts Don't Mind if You Decline Invitations
Researchers in the U.S. conducted a study titled "Saying No: The Negative Ramifications From Invitation Declines Are Less Severe Than We Think" to see if declining Christmas party invitations will really have great consequences.
According to The Guardian's latest report, the new study interviewed over 2,000 Americans. In the first part of the research, 382 participants were separated into two groups.
One of the groups was asked to read an invitation from a hypothetical friend. The other group pretended to be organizers or hosts of Christmas parties or other similar gatherings.
Those who pretended to receive invitations said that they were afraid to decline since they thought hosts or organizers would be disappointed or angry. The other group who pretended to be party hosts said that they really didn't care if people rejected their invitations.
Based on the study's findings, people who received invitations tend to rate anticipated outcomes as more negative compared to those who are sending invitations.
"Across our experiments, we consistently found that invitees overestimate the negative ramifications that arise in the eyes of inviters following an invitation decline," explained the study's lead author, Dr. Julian Givi.
Involved researchers added that party hosts who previously declined invitations themselves tend to think less about rejections compared to people who always organize parties or other social gatherings.
How to Politely Decline Christmas Invitations
Although a new study proved that Christmas party hosts don't care if you decline their invitations, it is still important to know how to politely reject their letters.
To help you, here are some tips you can follow:
- Always read the entire invitation letter and try to respond the same way the letter invited you.
- You can use the most common excuses, such as it'll be a conflict with your family schedule, work, you won't be around, you already have plans, etc.
- But, if the host is a very close friend or relative to you, then the best thing you can do is to tell them the truth.
