Nicholas A. Christakis, Blueprint: The Evolutionary Origins of a Good Society

Excerpt

Imagine that a shopper finds a wallet during her visit to a store and turns it in to an employee at the lost and found desk. How likely do you think it is that the employee would contact the owner of the wallet, whose name and contact information are inside, if the wallet contained personal items but no money? If the wallet contained a small amount of money? A large amount? If you are like most people, you probably think that the employee would be most likely to return the wallet if it contained only personal items, and least likely to return the wallet if it contained a large amount of money. After all, doesn’t self-interest trump concern for others? The greater the temptation to benefit oneself, the less likely one is to do the right thing. …