Perceived surveillance reliably boosts prosocial behavior in daily life

Evidence

Our daily lives are replete with evidence of this basic principle. Drivers reduce their speed when they notice a police car in their rearview mirror. When cameras and mirrors are installed in shopping malls, the temptation to steal is dampened. Politicians and corporations are less corrupt when they are held accountable to voters or to shareholders, respectively. There is less temptation to cheat the system when earnings and expense accounts of public servants and corporate bigwigs are made public. There is more generosity in the presence of others, prompting charities to raise money in public. When the donation box reaches you, and everyone is watching, what can you do? — Norenzayan, Ara, Big gods - how religion transformed…, 84

Categorization

• XREF: Supplies the general surveillance mechanism the fumi-e ritual weaponizes: public visibility curbs defection from orthodoxy exactly as cameras curb theft.
• corroborated: 3 independent passages support this claim — Norenzayan, Ara, Big gods - how religion transformed…, 84