Social Experiments
Do You Believe In Luck?
I ran across a live social experiment today at the University of Washington. A ladder was set up across the path with two options: go under it or hop the barrier and avoid it. Overall, most people walked under the ladder (oblivious or knowingly) though a few folks made a beeline for the barriers.
Interesting! I would have walked under :) Well, actually, today, I might not have. Eh, who knows? :)
my not walking under ladders has more to do with an aversion to things dropping/falling on me than luck :)
if the ladder was empty i’d have gone under.
I think it would have been a more interesting experiment without the sign. People’s actions would have been more natural and spontaneous if the sign didn’t prompt them to think about what they were doing. The question is, would more people avoid the ladder if they weren’t being challenged on their beliefs?
Ah, but here’s the rub. The sign was only placed on one side, where I was standing. On the opposite side, there was no sign. I think you’re right though…more people jumped the barrier from the sign side than from the opposite side, though I did see a few folks jump the barrier in the 5 minutes I watched from the non-side side.