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YouTuber conducts social experiment to test Japanese people’s legendary honesty 【Video】

Scott Wilson Apr 2, 2016
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returning wallet top

How many Japanese passerby return the lost wallet to its owner?

We’ve seen examples time and time again of how honest the people of Japan are. In many countries where leaving your property alone in plain sight for five seconds means it’s basically already gone, it can be a little hard to believe.

So to test out just how honest the Japanese people really are, Japanese YouTuber Zenim at the channel Monkey Python decided to carry out a little social experiment.

He walked around the Harajuku area and intentionally dropped his wallet immediately after passing by some people. He then kept walking and waited to see if anyone returned the wallet, of if they kept the leather treasure for themselves.

How many of the 15 tests ended in honesty? Watch the video below to find out:

▼ Living in the U.S., I can personally attest that I have had $0 returned to me that I’ve lost over the years, so these are some heartwarming statistics.

▼ But are they true? YouTuber Zenim and his wallet are about to find out.

▼ The first drop. Down goes the wallet inconspicuously out the back pocket.

▼ We’ve got a spotter! Will they return it, or pocket the pocketbook?

▼ And they return it! Score one for the green, “honest monkeys”.

▼ The next dropped wallet gets spotted instantly. Is that woman excited to return it, or to get some free easy cash?

▼ Honesty wins out again. Go, green team!

▼ And the wallet keeps getting returned again…

▼ …and again…

▼ …and again, all the way to the end.
That’s 15 out of 15 returned for a final score of…

▼ One hundred-percent! If there are any doubters out there, it’s hard to argue with a one hundred-percent return rate.

Of course, to be fair, the experiment isn’t perfect. Zenim did drop the wallet in a very public place, so chances are there were others besides the person who returned it who saw him drop it. That makes it harder to stuff the wallet in your own pocket knowing that there might be judging eyes out there watching what you do.

It would be interesting to run a similar experiment in a more private setting where there would be no such public consequences and see if the results were the same. Either that, or, we can stop testing the Japanese people’s honesty and just appreciate them for being awesome. That works too!

What would you do in the same situation? Would you return the wallet, or grab it and run in the opposite direction? And, to add another layer to the question, would it make a difference if you found the wallet in Japan or your home country? Let us know!

Source: YouTube/Monkey Python via grapee
Images: YouTube/Monkey Python