Researchers 'Lost' 17,000 Wallets In Hundreds Of Cities To See What People Would Actually Return

Hibbo · June 26, 2019

A group of 13 research assistants (11 men and 2 women) were recruited for a trip around the world. They travelled to 355 major cities across 40 countries. In each city, they visited banks, theatres, hotels, police stations, and other public spaces and turned in a “lost wallet,” which they claimed to have found on the street, to a nearby employee.

Some of the wallets also contained a modest cash sum: an amount roughly to equal $20 in the country’s currency. In three countries specifically - the United Kingdom, Poland, and the United States - some of the wallets had a larger cash bounty of $140, or had the $20 but no key. All told, the team 'lost' a whopping 17,000 wallets.

Averaging all the countries together, there was a clear, if counterintuitive result. Fewer than half (40 per cent) of people bothered to contact the wallet’s faux owner when it had no money, but a slim majority (51 per cent) did when they spotted the cash. And for the wallets with $140 inside, an impressive 72 per cent of people tried to return them.

Apparently Switzerland is the most honest, while China is the least honest.

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McBain · June 26, 2019

Everyone under Israel are basically Gyppo’s

Toast · June 26, 2019

Is this where the Arteta money went ?

Frang · June 26, 2019

that your tenner lad ?

Tipp blue · June 26, 2019

Back in about 2005 when I was working on the buildings (electrician) there was 2 of us working in a house in a new estate when the boss arrived and told us that he'd lost his wallet on site and that there was about 2000 euros in it, and he wanted us to help find it, so off we went and over text decided that if we found it, pocket the money split it and hide the wallet in the skip, we never found it.

Prevenger17 · June 26, 2019

Clumsy bunch of researchers imo

chrismpw · June 26, 2019

Interesting study. Ashamed but not entirely surprised to see the UK not near the top of the list. Unsurprisingly I blame Maggie's 'grab what you can' culture she instilled.

What else was in the wallets? Credit cards? Cards without cash would explain why fewer were returned as the returner would naturally assume they'd be cancelled and worthless.

Wallets with photos of loved ones? You'd like to think people would make more of an effort with that.

Alanbileysfeathercut · June 26, 2019

I lost my wallet in the asda once got it back unemptied.
Picture of the wife must've scared them

SpongeBob brown shoes · June 26, 2019

I'd like to know which cities

Bungle · June 26, 2019

My mate lost his wallet a few years back after having just withdrawn £500 to pay his rent, he called in at the police station the following day on the off chance it had been handed in and it had, with all the money still in there and the number for the lady that had found it on the bus so he was able to call and thank her.

I'd have to hand a wallet in or try and locate the person somehow to hand it back if I found it, clone their identity first obviously, play the long game.

The binman chronicles · June 26, 2019

I knew they were doing this research so I followed them around picking up the wallets as they left them. I wasn't able to go to Israel or the countries above them so that is probably why the results are the way they are... :coffee:

Philw · June 27, 2019

chrismpw said:
Interesting study. Ashamed but not entirely surprised to see the UK not near the top of the list. Unsurprisingly I blame Maggie's 'grab what you can' culture she instilled.

We actually have one of the biggest differences between wallets without cash not being handed in, and those with being handed in, so....

-Rob- · June 27, 2019

I'd love to know the benefit of spending so much money on such useless information.

17,000 wallets at $5 each = $85,000
At least $20 in each wallet = $340,000
$1k per country for travel = $40,000

Was it really worth close to half a million dollars to work out that some people are honest and others aren’t? I could have told them that for 20 bucks.