Why do people say "you scratch my back..."

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Why do people say "you scratch my back and i'll scratch yours" - then when you have done something for them, they forget to reciprocate?


in the words of Carlton Wood and Harry Fielding...

AAAAAAAAAARRRRRSE!! !

I have a rule about this. If I do something for someone else, I do it because I want to. I never expect anything in return and therefore I'm not disappointed when I get nothing.

I read a book called "Yes! 50 Scientifically Proven Ways to be Persuasive" and there was a study that showed that, as time passed, a given favor becomes more important to the person who gave it than the person who received it.

I like that book name, it is very funny. It is the 'Yes', at the beginning that does it I think. Very amusing.

The title sounds sort of fake, like the name of a book in a comedy movie.

I saw that you can buy it on amazon though, so it is real.

Yes that saying "you scratch my back and I'll scratch yours" has always bothered me since it sounds like a threat almost. Someone who says it to you at work it saying you need to look out for me or I may not look out for you.