Motherboard Writer Travels the United States to Uncover the Truth Behind the Swedish Fish Theory

Motherboard writer Joseph Neighbor traveled the United States to uncover the truth behind the so-called “Swedish Fish Theory,” the idea that including a bag of candy when sending something for repair will help expedite the process. It began in a reddit thread, so Neighbor tracked down the original poster as well as some commenters. He also visited tech repair companies to find out if a bag of candy really has any influence, and if so, why? Is it just simple bribery, or does it have more to do with making a person feel appreciated?