Wallet Test (testing people's honesty)

suncrafter · 10-02-2007, 12:41 AM

A sociological experiment was conducted in Illinois called the "Wallet Test". You can read about it at http://www.wallettest.com/

The researchers deliberately dropped 100 identical wallets (containing money and ID) in public places to test honesty.

The test results were broken down by age, gender and race ----> http://www.wallettest.com/Lost_Walle...ults_Page.html

What I'd like to know is why did men steal over twice as much as women?

*Dale Baldwin* · 10-02-2007, 03:05 AM

Personally I think 100 is too small a sample size to deduce anything.

RLacey · 10-02-2007, 03:13 AM

Not to mention that they don't state when they did the test, which could have an effect on how much of a hurry people are in or why they're wandering around town in the first place.

Also, the breakdown where they compare races based on age groups doesn't contain nearly enough samples. In each case, the number of blacks tested in each age group is lower than the number of whites, so that the total percentage of "dishonest" people is higher for them despite the actual total of dishonest black people being lower in each case.

It makes for some nice pie charts, but it's hardly scientific.

Also:

Quote:

Originally Posted by The FAQ for this experiment

Q: Aren't you invading people's privacy?
A: No. All filming was done in public places. If people don't want to be filmed doing dishonest or stupid things, then they should not do dishonest or stupid things in public.

The fact that somebody is doing something in public doesn't exactly entitle you to use footage of them in this way. You might be able to, but there's a certain moral dimension to this that they might be overlooking.

Squinky · 10-02-2007, 10:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by suncrafter

What I'd like to know is why did men steal over twice as much as women?

To give women an enhanced sense of inherent superiority, of course!

Giligan · 10-02-2007, 05:36 PM

And here I thought women stole less than men because women get their husbands to steal for them.

Squinky · 10-02-2007, 05:52 PM

Well, that too. After all, you don't have all that many stealing opportunities when you're confined to the kitchen...

Not A Speck Of Cereal · 10-02-2007, 08:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RLacey

Not to mention that they don't state when they did the test

Or where.

*stepurhan* · 10-04-2007, 04:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by suncrafter

What I'd like to know is why did men steal over twice as much as women?

Quote:

Originally Posted by RLacey

Not to mention that they don't state when they did the test,

Quote:

Originally Posted by Not A Speck Of Cereal

Or where.

I think the answers to both these questions could make a significant difference to the apparent man/woman divide.

On the face of it there is a fair split (51 women, 49 men) But if the women were all tested outside a church on a Sunday morning and the men were all tested outside a pub on a Saturday night then you're going to skew the results. I don't really think the testing was this extremely divided but without some indication we can't tell.

Glenn Epic · 10-12-2007, 05:48 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by stepurhan

On the face of it there is a fair split (51 women, 49 men) But if the women were all tested outside a church on a Sunday morning and the men were all tested outside a pub on a Saturday night then you're going to skew the results. I don't really think the testing was this extremely divided but without some indication we can't tell.

An excellent point indeed. As far as the pie chart indicates, the male sample may include Ali Baba and his 40 thieves. In which case, one of them is a terrible thief.

samIamsad · 10-12-2007, 08:21 AM

Women steal hearts, not moneybags.

Glenn Epic · 10-13-2007, 02:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by samIamsad

Women steal hearts, not moneybags.

True that.

Wormsie · 10-13-2007, 02:43 PM

All the women were filthy rich?

Most criminals are men anyway? (I think?)

Because girls are taught to be nice, while boys aren't so much?

Still... I think it's more the personality that counts. I wouldn't think all women to be saints because of a poll like that. And 100 is a rather small sample.

But to speculate more, I wasn't surprised that so many men were dishonest, I was surprised that so many women were honest.

I'm also wondering how many wallets ended up at the local police station and whether or not those were counted.

10-02-2007, 12:41 AM	#1
suncrafter Junior Member Join Date: Sep 2007 Posts: 6	Wallet Test (testing people's honesty) A sociological experiment was conducted in Illinois called the "Wallet Test". You can read about it at http://www.wallettest.com/ The researchers deliberately dropped 100 identical wallets (containing money and ID) in public places to test honesty. The test results were broken down by age, gender and race ----> http://www.wallettest.com/Lost_Walle...ults_Page.html What I'd like to know is why did men steal over twice as much as women? Share Share this post on Twitter

10-02-2007, 03:05 AM	#2
Dale Baldwin Super Moderator Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: Southampton, UK Posts: 3,139	Personally I think 100 is too small a sample size to deduce anything. Share Share this post on Twitter __________________ Now Playing: Catherine, Sword and Sworcery:EP Recently Completed: The Witcher

10-02-2007, 05:36 PM	#5
Giligan The Greater Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Kentucky Posts: 6,541	And here I thought women stole less than men because women get their husbands to steal for them. Share Share this post on Twitter __________________ Success is going from failure to failure without loss of enthusiasm. -Cliff Bleszinski

10-02-2007, 05:52 PM	#6
Squinky Unreliable Narrator Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: Le Canada Posts: 9,873	Well, that too. After all, you don't have all that many stealing opportunities when you're confined to the kitchen... Share Share this post on Twitter __________________ Squinky is always right, but only for certain values of "always" and "right".

10-12-2007, 08:21 AM	#10
samIamsad capsized. Join Date: Mar 2005 Posts: 5,534	Women steal hearts, not moneybags. Share Share this post on Twitter __________________ Look, Mr. Bubbles...!

10-13-2007, 02:43 PM	#12
Wormsie Doctor Watson Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: The Catacombs Posts: 4,736	All the women were filthy rich? Most criminals are men anyway? (I think?) Because girls are taught to be nice, while boys aren't so much? Still... I think it's more the personality that counts. I wouldn't think all women to be saints because of a poll like that. And 100 is a rather small sample. But to speculate more, I wasn't surprised that so many men were dishonest, I was surprised that so many women were honest. I'm also wondering how many wallets ended up at the local police station and whether or not those were counted. Share Share this post on Twitter __________________ Don't worry, I'm a doctor. Last edited by Wormsie; 10-13-2007 at 02:53 PM.

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