(3 min read) |
| From https://unsplash.com/@emkal |
Have you ever wondered what could you put into your wallet to maximize the
chances of it being returned if lost? If yes, then you are not alone. Many people like you and me have given a thought of putting items (other than the address) inside the wallet, that would influence the finder to return the wallet back to you.
In the late 1960s and early 1970s, researchers interested in the psychology of helping
carried out several studies in which they secretly dropped wallets on busy streets and then monitored
the return rates. Perhaps the most prolific of these wallet droppers was psychologist HarveyHornstein from Columbia University. Very recently, Richard Wiseman author of the book, 59 Seconds: Think a Little, Change a Lot conducted a Hornsteinesque study.
Study
He bought 240 wallets and filled them with the same set of everyday items, including raffle tickets, discount vouchers, and fake membership cards. Next, one of four photographs was added to batches of equal number of wallets. The photographs depicted either a smiling baby, a cute puppy, a happy family, or a contented elderly couple. All of the wallets were then randomly ordered, and over a period of a couple of weeks were secretly dropped on the streets in areas of high pedestrian traffic.
Result of the study
Why should the photograph of the baby have performed so well? The answer appears to lie deep within our evolutionary past. Brain-scanning scientists at Oxford University recently examined what was going on in people’s heads when they were shown photographs of either baby or adult faces. Activity in the section of the brain directly behind the eyes (officially referred to as the “medial orbitofrontal cortex”) kicked in within a seventh of a second after seeing the baby’s face but not the adult’s. The response happened too fast to be consciously controlled, and the part of the brain involved is associated with people receiving a nice reward, such as a big bar of chocolate or a lottery win.
Many scientists think that this “babyawww” linkage has evolved over thousands of years and promotes the survival of future generations by making people feel good about, and therefore willing to help, vulnerable and defenseless infants. Other research suggests that this caring attitude not only applies to assisting babies but also increases the likelihood of people helping anyone in need. In this view, participants who opened the wallets containing the photograph of the baby couldn’t keep their brains from automatically responding to the image of big eyes, broad forehead, and button nose. Within a fraction of a second a deep-seated evolutionary mechanism caused them to rapidly get in touch with their inner parent, become happier and more caring, and thus be more likely to return the wallet.
Whatever the explanation, the practical message is clear: if you want to up the chances of a lost wallet being returned, tuck in a photograph of the cutest, happiest baby you can find and make sure that it is prominently displayed.
