UNIT 7B: A TEST OF HONESTY

Reader's Digest: How honest are we?London, June 18 /PRNewswire/ -- Britons have few qualms about stealing from work, travelling on a train without a ticket and speeding on motorways, according to a pan-European honesty quiz conducted by Reader's Digest magazine.
Nearly 4,000 people in 19 European countries were confronted with 12 moral dilemmas to test their sense of right and wrong. The results of the test, published in the July issue of Reader's Digest, reveal that Britons rate themselves as less honest than the average European.
In only three out of the twelve dilemmas did the British display a clear propensity to act in a more moral fashion:
- When asked if they would hand a lost wallet containing £35 (EUR50) in at a police station, 76% of Britons said they would, compared to only 50% of the Europeans polled.
- Asked if they would drive home from a party, even though they knew they had had too much to drink, only 5% of Britons said they would, as against 14 % of Europeans.
- 43% admitted they would tell their friend if they suspected their partner was cheating. In contrast only 37% of Europeans would tell the truth.
Yet, in seven of the categories, Britons revealed themselves as being far from honest:
- When asked whether they would conceal income to avoid tax, nearly half (46%) of the British respondents confessed they would. Across Europe, 39% said they would whilst in Austria a whopping 64% would be willing to cheat the system.
- An average of 66% of Brits would board their commuter train without a ticket compared to 53% of Europeans. The Russians had no moral obligations in terms of transport with 80% more than happy to get on a train with no ticket.
- Another moral taboo that the British admitted to breaking was parking in a disabled bay if the supermarket car park was full. 36% admitted they would, although for no more than ten minutes. In contrast only 25% of Europeans would be willing to steal the space.
- Honesty with employers appears to be lacking in the UK. Nearly two thirds (60%) of the Brits questioned said would steal office stationery compared to under half (49%) in Europe.
- Over a quarter (28%) of the Brits interviewed admitted they would steal a hotel towel compared to 16% of all Europeans. However the report indicates that hygiene rather than morals is the deterrent. One woman from Banbury stated, 'You don't know who else has used them.'
- An astonishing 70% of the British respondents said they would break the speed limit on a motorway. The European average was 65%.
- Around two thirds of Brits said they would install illegal software (65%) with a European average of 64%.
- Throughout Europe more women than men gave the honest answer. This gender gap was greatest in Poland by 14%. Spain had the lowest difference of 1%.
- Young people (18-35) proved less honest than the over-fifties. 64% of Hungary's youth are willing to steal office stationery compared to 35% of the elder generation.
Bob Low, European Bureau Chief, Reader's Digest comments: "People were surprisingly honest about how dishonestly they would behave in certain situations.
"It appears that the British, in common with people throughout Europe, don't mind cheating on the state, or big institutions such as train companies or computer firms, over matters like evading tax, dodging fares or using illegal software. But they are much less likely to cheat individuals or put them at risk. So they'll hand in lost wallets and they won't drink and drive."
Notes to Editors: The quiz was carried out by researchers in shopping centres in 19 European countries. In each country, some 200 people aged 18 and over were confronted with 12 everyday dilemmas to test their sense of right and wrong. The UK polling was carried out in Glasgow, Nottingham, and Banbury in Oxfordshire.

The Honesty Test Questions
1: As you leave a big supermarket, you realise that the cashier has given you £10 too much in change. Would you return and give the money back?
2: You have had too much to drink at a party and suspect you are well over the legal drink- driving limit. Would you still attempt to drive home?
3: You think you can get away with paying less tax if you conceal some of your income on your annual tax return. Would you do so?
4: The supermarket car park is full - except for the disabled parking spaces. You have one item to buy, which will take you no more than 10 minutes. Would you park your car in the disabled bay for that time?
5: You're in a hurry to get to work and you don't have time to buy a ticket before you board your commuter train. The next train is in 20 minutes. There's are good chance you won't be caught. Would you take a chance?
6: You need some envelopes and pens for your family's personal use. Would you take them from the supply at your office?
7:You find a wallet in the street with £35 inside, but no address. Would you hand it in at a police station?
8:You see your best friend's husband/wife walking hand-in-hand with a stranger. Would you feel obliged to tell your friend what you have seen?
9:The towels in your hotel bathroom are very attractive. Would you put one in your suitcase and walk away with it?
10: You are waiting in a long line for a bus in the driving rain. When it arrives you realise you won't get on unless you jump in the queue. Would you do so?
11: You are driving home at 9 p.m. and the motorway is almost empty. Would you drive at 15 m.p.h. over the speed limit to get back more quickly?
12: A friend offers you an illegal copy of an expensive computer software program for free. Would you accept it and install it on your own computer?
Distributed by PR Newswire on behalf of Reader's Digest