Poster Of Eyes Makes Folks More Honest
Folks often say “I don’t care what anyone thinks about me”, but the indisputable fact is that we do care what people think. In the privacy of our homes we do things that we hope never come to the light of day.
We tend to act more honestly and responsibly when we are being watched by others. No one wants to be a pariah, we all seek and value acceptance by our friends, neighbors and family.
Researchers at Newcastle University set up an experiment that proves that folks are more honest when they are being watched — even when the eyes are not real, but photographed ones.
The wily researchers stuck a poster above an honesty box alongside a kettle, with tea, coffee and milk. Over 10 weeks, they alternated each week between images of eyes and pictures of flowers. In the weeks that the poster with the pair of eyes was up, they collected much more money.
A smart wife will display a photograph of herself by her husband’s computer, it may dissuade him for surfing porno sites.
A worried dad might tape a photo of himself on the dashboard of his son’s new Mustang, it might make him a more responsible driver.
Instead of spending thousands of dollars on a security system for your house, remove the alarm company placard and put up a photo of your lovely face.
I wonder if the same concept works with cats, maybe I should put up my mug shots all over my house to prevent my cats from tearing up the place when I’m at work?
I write a weekly column for a small town newspaper in Virginia, and I also write for several Web sites. Please leave a comment or send me an email at: rreyes4966@aol.com | More from Robert Paul Reyes
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