Newcastle University has researched into the levels of honesty shown when people are being watched. The researchers placed a poster of either a pair of eyes or flowers on the cupboard above 'the honesty box.' People were unsupervised when paying for their hot drinks, and researchers discovered that nearly three times more money was paid for drinks when the poster of the eyes was watching over them, rather than flowers. The experiment was conducted in a simple office kitchen at the University, by the researcher's collegues, who were unaware of the investigation.
The results show that even though the eyes were not real, it caused people to show more honest behaviour. Also, when male eyes were used, people paid more. Psychologists say images of beady eyes could increase ticket sales on public transport, and improve survalliance systems to deter antisocial behaviour.
Dr Bateson, behavioural biologist in charge of the experiment, said: "Although it was just a photocopied black and white poster, we know that people's brains are set up to process faces and eyes, and that is possibly because it is very important for us to know if we are being watched by other people. It does raise the possibility that you could get people to behave more co-operatively or pro-socially by putting up pictures of eyes."