Probing the public's honesty
A field experiment using the 'lost letter' technique∗
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 2152297 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Thomas Gabor (0000-0003-2048-8667, University of Ottawa), Tonia Barker (University of Ottawa) |
| Year | 1989 |
| Volume | 10 |
| Issue | 4 |
| Pages | 387-399 |
| Publication date | 1989-09-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Deviant Behavior (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0163-9625 • E-ISSN: 1521-0456 |
| Publisher | Informa UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1080/01639625.1989.9967824 |
| OpenAlex | W2072460919 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 2 |
| References cited | 17 |
The present study probed the honesty of the general public through an experimentl approach. A variaty of experimental procedures have been used in previous research. This study used the "lost letter" technique, whereby ordinary citizens are offered an opportunity to keep envelopes that are planted on their cars and that are apparently lost. They are stamped and addressed (actually they are addressed to the investigators). One quarter of the "lost" letters were kept by the subjects. On the whole, the value of the contents (some contained a coin made to appear valuable) did not seem to affect the return rate. Also, little difference was found in the behavior of the male and female subjects. Age, however, did appear important as younger subjects were significantly more likely to keep the letters. Since the value of the contents was not important, a failure to return could simply indicate less altruism on their part. Also, an interaction was found between the variables of age and sex, as young females had the lowest return rate and older females the highest return rate, with males of both age categories falling in between these extremes. This finding suggests that future research comparing the criminality or deviance of tie sexes consider the variations in the behavior of each sex across different age categories
Affect (linguistics · Developmental psychology · Deviance (statistics · Honesty · Sociology · Statistics · Value (mathematics · Demography · Evolutionary Psychology and Human Behavior · Experimental Behavioral Economics Studies · Mathematics · Psychology · Psychology of Social Influence · Social Psychology
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| Unique citing works | 2 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 0,25 |
| Citation span | 2018 - 2024 (7) |
| Citation velocity | recent |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 2 |