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FINDERS KEEPERS
Finders Keepers, Losers Weepers: this saying implies that people are entitled to keep any
belongings they may find laying around. Our goal in this study was to examine the idea that
people are generally good natured and, if presented with the opportunity, will return belongings
to their owner (specifically a $20 bill in this case).
According to Korte, People are often placed in situations where behavior that can assist other
people is restrained by certain variables. (as cited in Goldstein, Minkin, Baer, 1978, p.465).
Some states have laws that limit an individuals rights to keep something they find. The
fundamental problem in this area is the age-old debate over how to define possession and who
is entitled to ultimate possession (Joeseph Simeone, St. Louis University Law Journal). The law
does not sanction the childish rhymefinders keepers, losers weepersbecause property
remains with the owner until he voluntarily disposes of his title to the property (Joeseph
Simeone, St. Louis University Law Journal). In Missouri the laws concerning this matter are
clearly defined: Property may be separated from the owner by being abandoned, or lost, or
mislaid. In the first instance, it goes back into a state of nature; or as is most commonly
expressed, it returns to the common mass and belongs to the first finder, occupier, or taker. In the
second instance, to be lost, it must have been unintentionally or involuntarily parted with, in
which case it is also an object which may be found, and the finder is entitled to the possession
against every one but the true owner. But, if it is intentionally put down, it is not lost in a legal
sense, though the owner may not remember where he left it, and cannot find it; for the loss of
goods in legal and common intendment, depends upon something more than the knowledge or
ignorance, the memory or want of memory, of the owner at any given moment (Joeseph
Simeone, St. Louis University Law Journal).
FINDERS KEEPERS
Even though race, gender, and past offenses may influence if the person returns lost valuables,
we posit that people are generally good natured and will return valuables if given the
opportunity.
Methods
Participants
Participants in this research were chosen at random based on their proximity to the
researchers. Both women and men, and all age groups were included in this research. The
youngest individual included in the research was an 18 year old female and the oldest was a 58
year old male. The majority of the participants were UNCC students due to the fact that the
research was done on campus at UNCC. No ethnicity was excluded from the research;
participants were chosen at random regardless of ethnicity.
Measurements
The data that was recorded from each participant included age, sex, place of residency,
and ethnicity. Participants success in this study was evaluated based on them returning or not
returning a $20 bill to the researchers. Some participants were too engaged in other activities to
notice the money on the ground and were not included in the data.
Procedure
The researchers walked around the University of North Carolina of Charlotte college campus.
All three of the researchers walked together and observed varying groups of people throughout
campus. One of the researchers picked out a random target group in the immediate area. The
other two researchers strategically placed themselves in the vicinity of the target group. One
researcher walked past the target and drop a twenty dollar bill. The other researchers would
watch to see if the target would pick up the money and return it, or if the target would grab the
FINDERS KEEPERS
money and keep it. If the target picked up the money and didnt return it, the other researchers
walked up a politely informed the target that there was a social experiment in progress. If the
participant returned the money he/she was praised for doing so. If the participant did not return
the money he/she received no praise. After the participant returned the money to the researchers
the data groups that were explained previously were recorded.
Results
The results of the research turned out fairly close to as originally anticipated. The vast majority
of participants were more than willing to return the money. There were some outlying factors
that affected the participants response to the money being dropped. A large number of
participants were too distracted in their current engagement to even notice the money, but those
people were not included in the data. The only participants that were included in the data were
those that had one of four responses: they saw the money drop and returned it, they saw the
money drop and attempted to take it, they did not see the money drop but attempted to find an
owner anyway, or they saw the money drop and continued about their business with no response.
The table below shows all of the participants that had one of the four responses previously
mentioned.
Age
Sex
Place of Residency
Ethnicity
Returned money
19
Female
Off
Caucasian
Yes
22
Female
Off
Caucasian
Yes
45
Male
Off
Caucasian
Yes
FINDERS KEEPERS
22
Female
Off
African American
Yes
22
Female
Off
African American
Yes
18
Female
On
Indian
Yes
22
Male
On
African American
Yes
28
Male
Off
African American
Yes
26
Male
Off
African American
Yes
58
Male
Off
African American
No
26
Female
Off
African American
Unresponsive
18
Female
On
Caucasian
21
Female
Off
Caucasian
Yes
???
Male
???
African American
???
Male
???
African American
21
Male
Off
Caucasian
Yes
FINDERS KEEPERS
22
Male
On
Caucasian
Yes
29
Female
Off
Caucasian
Yes
19
Male
On
African American
Yes
34
Male
Caucasian
Yes
23
Male
Off
African American
No
19
Male
Off
Caucasian
Yes
Aside from whether or not the participant returned the money, there were four main data groups
that were recorded: Age, sex, place of residency, and ethnicity. Of these four data groups there
were two that seemed to be non-significant to the ultimate action of either returning or not
returning the money; the two data groups deemed non-significant were age and place of
residency.
FINDERS KEEPERS
Discussion
According to the results of the experiment there were many factors that contributed to whether or
not the participant returned the money that was dropped. Some people did not attempt to even
pick up the money that was dropped because they simply didnt want to, meaning either they
FINDERS KEEPERS
were too lazy, they were too busy to return it or they were waiting for the owner to disappear and
take it.
There is a slight correlation between on-campus living students and returning the money.
Although there were only two participants who tried to take the money, they both lived offcampus. Campus living seems to have an impact on how people will respond to these situations.
When people live off campus they are typically living a life that isnt monitored much allowing
them to do whatever they want. When a person is unmonitored, typically, bad decisions will be
made. The bad decisions made off campus will affect how people act on campus.
FINDERS KEEPERS
References
Goldstein, R., Minkin, B., Minkin, N., & Baer, D. (1978). Finders, keepers?: An analysis and
validation of a free- found-ad policy. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 11(4),
465.
Simone, J. (2009). Finders keepers, losers weepers: the law of finding lost property in
Missouri. Saint Louis University Law Journal, 54(167), 170.
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Commented [CW12]: Professor Waterhouse
comments:
MINIMUM of 3 peer reviewed sources.