Cues of being watched enhance cooperation in a real-world setting
Open accessAbstract
We examined the effect of an image of a pair of eyes on contributions to an honesty box used to collect money for drinks in a university coffee room. People paid nearly three times as much for their drinks when eyes were displayed rather than a control image. This finding provides the first evidence from a naturalistic setting of the importance of cues of being watched, and hence reputational concerns, on human cooperative behaviour.
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Individuals react in socially desirable ways to even the slightest cues indicating that someone may be watching.
“research findings generally agree that individuals react in socially desirable ways to even the slightest cues indicating that someone may be watching (Bateson et al. 2006; Boyd et al. 2010; Burnham and Johnson 2005; Haley and Fessler 2005; but cf. Northover et al. 2017).”
From Paradoxical effects of self-awareness of being observed: testing the effect of police body-worn cameras on assaults and aggression against officers (2018) · cites this paper as Bateson et al. 2006
Studies show increased voluntary payment when no one is watching when the collection can has eyes drawn on it.
“Studies show increased voluntary payment (when no one is watching) when the collection can has eyes drawn on it”
From The Evolutionary Psychology of Chinese Religion: Pre-Qin High Gods as Punishers and Rewarders (2011) · cites this paper as Bateson et al. 2006
Less cheating on computer-assisted exams occurs when virtual eyeballs float on the screen.
“and less cheating on computer-assisted exams when virtual eyeballs float on the screen (Bateson et al. 2006).”
From The Evolutionary Psychology of Chinese Religion: Pre-Qin High Gods as Punishers and Rewarders (2011) · cites this paper as Bateson et al. 2006
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- Authors
- Bateson, M., Nettle, D., & Roberts, G.
- Affiliations
- Evolution and Behaviour Research Group, School of Biology and Psychology, University of Newcastle upon TyneHenry Wellcome Building for Neuroecology, Framlington Place, Newcastle upon Tyne NE2 4HH, UK
- Newcastle University (GB)
- Venue
- Biology Letters
- Publisher
- The Royal Society
- Published
- 2006-06-27
- Volume
- 2
- Issue
- 3
- Pages
- 412-414
- ISSN
- 1744-9561 (ISSN-L)
- 1744-957X
- PMC
- PMC1686213
- OpenAlex
- W2103958511
- Cited by
- 1,304
- References
- 4
- Citations by year
- 2026: 31 · 2025: 70 · 2024: 50 · 2023: 66 · 2022: 46 · 2021: 92 · 2020: 97 · 2019: 111 · 2018: 69 · 2017: 59 · 2016: 109 · 2015: 102 · 2014: 91 · 2013: 82 · 2012: 54
- FWCI
- 68.90
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- Locations
- Biology Letters (publishedVersion)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- RePEc: Research Papers in Economics (submittedVersion)
- Natural Field Experiments (submittedVersion)
- Newcastle University ePrints (Newcastle Univesity)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Safety Research › Experimental Behavioral Economics Studies
- Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Evolutionary Game Theory and Cooperation
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Evolutionary Psychology and Human Behavior
- Keywords
- eye images, cooperation, reputational concerns, honesty, naturalistic settings
- MeSH terms
- Attitude, Cooperative Behavior, Culture, Female, Humans, Interpersonal Relations, Male, Perception, Social Behavior, Beneficence, Trust
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