You are being watched!

Rules make you and me human! Otherwise we are no better than animals! Though some animals behave better than us!

That is the bitter truth!

Places where crime is less are the ones where the punishment for the said crimes are severe! We follow even the basic traffic sense and decency only when we are being watched!

If you realize that no one is monitoring or policing you then you are more likely to break the rules or your integrity!

Have you heard of the Honesty box experiment? It was mentioned by Daniel Kahneman in his book; Thinking; Fast and Slow.


A 2006 study from Newcastle University found that displaying images of watching eyes in a canteen “honesty box” nearly tripled the amount of money contributed by staff. When a poster featuring eyes was alternated with one showing flowers, payments were significantly higher during the weeks with the eye image!

Researchers concluded that the feeling of being observed, even by an image, can trigger unconscious, automatic reactions that promote honest and cooperative behavior!

A university canteen used a long-running “honesty box” system for staff to pay for their drinks. The Intervention was that for 10 weeks, an A5 poster was placed above the box. Now the test was that every other week the poster displayed either a pair of flowers or a pair of eyes looking directly at the observer!

Remember that; in both cases no one is actually looking! There is no camera but only EYES!

But in spite of this; the study found that on the weeks when the eye image was displayed, staff contributed 2.76 times more money than during the weeks with the flower image!

The payments consistently increased when the poster changed to eyes and decreased when it reverted to flowers.

It was finally concluded that the eye images triggered an unconscious, mental reflex, not a conscious thought of being watched!

It was found that human brains are highly attuned to cues indicating potential social consequences, especially cues related to eyes and faces. This suggests that cues of being watched can encourage pro-social and cooperative behaviors, with implications for addressing anti-social behavior in real-world setting!

This means that people behave more civilized or decently when they have a feeling that they are being watched! It is the same with Cameras! Even if the CCTV or other cameras are not working; the mere presence of such devices or even a warning that you are being watched can make humans behave more decently!

Many times offices and firms who actually cannot afford a proper camera have used such ‘dummy’ cameras or signs to give an impression of being watched or monitored! These are enough for making people behave more human in the proper sense! Ironical how an AI (CCTV!) can make you human!
Ironical also how with such amazing ability to act Deepak Dobriyal gets very few roles!

Now imagine that the traffic camera is working and behave!

SHubh ratri!