Behavioral economist Dan Ariely talks about why everyone's willing to cheat a little, why you'll steal a staple from work but not petty cash and whether punishments for cheating actually work

Behavioral economist Dan Ariely, who teaches at Duke University, is known as one of the most original designers of experiments in social science. Not surprisingly, the best-selling authors creativity is evident throughout his latest book, The (Honest) Truth About Dishonesty. A lively tour through the impulses that cause many of us to cheat, the book offers especially keen insights into the ways in which we cut corners while still thinking of ourselves as moral people. Here, in Arielys own words, are seven lessons you didnt learn in school about dishonesty. (Interview edited and condensed by Gary Belsky.)

1. Most of us are 98-percenters.

A student told me a story about a locksmith he met when he locked himself out of the house. This student was amazed at how easily the locksmith picked his lock, but the locksmith explained that locks were really there to keep honest people from stealing. His view was that 1% of people would never steal, another 1% would always try to steal, and the rest of us are honest as long as were not easily tempted. Locks remove temptation for most people. And thats good, because in our research over many years, weve found that everybody has the capacity to be dishonest and almost everybody is at some point or another.

2. Well happily cheat until it hurts.

The Simple Model of Rational Crime suggests that the greater the reward, the greater the likelihood that people will cheat. But weve found that for most of us, the biggest driver of dishonesty is the ability to rationalize our actions so that we dont lose the sense of ourselves as good people. In one of our matrix experiments [a puzzle-solving exercise Ariely uses in his work to measure dishonesty], the level of cheating didnt change as the reward for cheating rose. In fact, the highest payout resulted in a little less cheating, probably because the amount of money got to be big enough that people couldnt rationalize their cheating as harmless. Most people are able to cheat a little because they can maintain the sense of themselves as basically honest people. They wont commit major fraud on their tax returns or insurance claims or expense reports, but theyll cut corners or exaggerate here or there because they dont feel that bad about it.

(MORE: What Matters More to Voters, Gas Prices or Jobs?)

3. Its no wonder people steal from work.

In one matrix experiment, we added a condition where some participants were paid in tokens, which they knew they could quickly exchange for real money. But just having that one step of separation resulted in a significant increase in cheating. Another time, we surveyed golfers and asked which act of moving a ball illegally would make other golfers most uncomfortable: using a club, their foot or their hand. More than twice as many said it would be less of a problem for other golfers, of course to use their club than to pick the ball up. Our willingness to cheat increases as we gain psychological distance from the action. So as we gain distance from money, it becomes easier to see ourselves as doing something other than stealing. Thats why many of us have no problem taking pencils or a stapler home from work when wed never take the equivalent amount of money from petty cash. And thats why Im a little concerned about the direction were taking toward becoming a cashless society. Virtual payments are a great convenience, but our research suggests we should worry that the farther people get from using actual money, the easier it becomes to steal.

4. Beware the altruistic crook.

Original post:
Why (Almost) All of Us Cheat and Steal