Does Money Make You Mean?
If the rich would share their wealth with the poor,/inequality might be solved. But this does not seem to be happening. Paul Piff,/an American social psychologist,/wanted to find out why.
Do rich people think and act differently from poor people? Paul Piff has explored this question/in dozens of experiments. His findings suggest/that as people’s wealth increases,/so do their feelings of entitlement and their self-interest,/but their empathy and compassion decrease. Piff worries/that as economic inequality increases,/the idea that everyone has an equal opportunity to succeed and prosper/will suffer.
A Rigged Game
In one interesting experiment,/people played a board game/in which two players compete/in buying and selling land, buildings, and houses. The goal is to see/who ends up with the most money and property. Each player begins with the same amount of money/(of course,/it is play money)/and each must follow the same rules.
Piff decided to change the game. He wanted to see/what would happen if the game were rigged/so that one player got twice as much money as the other player/and the rules also worked in favor of the “rich” player. More than 100 pairs of strangers/were asked to be either a “rich” player or a “poor” player/in a rigged game. Through hidden cameras,/Piff watched what happened.
As the game went on,/dramatic differences appeared between the two players. The rich players/began to show signs of power and celebration. They became loud/and slapped their pieces down on the board. They took more than their share of the pretzels/which the researchers had provided. The rich players became more boastful. They were less and less sensitive/to the plight of the poor players. In some cases,/they were actually rude.
According to Piff,/the rigged game can be used/as a metaphor for understanding a society/in which a few people have a lot more wealth and status/than the rest of the people.
In dozens of studies involving thousands of participants,/Piff is finding/that as people get richer,/they lose their sense of compassion/and they feel an increased sense of entitlement. Wealthier individuals are actually more likely to feel/that greed is good/and that the pursuit of self-interest is good and moral.
Other Experiments
Piff set up other experiments. He asked people about their family income,/level of education,/financial security,/and how much they valued the way they look. Piff even tested/how much time participants spent looking at themselves in the mirror. He found/that rich people looked at themselves more often/and were more narcissistic.
Piff also looked at helping behavior. He was interested in/who is more likely to offer help to another person. Rich and poor members of the community/were each given $10. They were told/that they could keep it all for themselves/or share a portion of it with a stranger. The researchers monitored how much people gave. The poorer people,/who had incomes between $15,000 and $25,000 a year,/gave 44 percent more of their money to the stranger/than did people making between $150,000 and $200,000 a year.
Another study examined/whether anybody would take candy/that was reserved for children/who were participating in a developmental program. People who felt rich/took twice as much candy/as those who felt poor.
Of course,/it is not only wealthy people/who show these patterns of behavior. In fact,/most of us in our regular daily lives/struggle to decide/when or whether to put our own interests/above the interests of other people. This is understandable/because most people like to think/that we all have an equal opportunity/to succeed and prosper/as long as we apply ourselves and work hard. Sometimes/we need to put our own interests first. But Piff’s studies show/that the wealthier people are,/the more likely they are to pursue personal success/without thinking about others.
Economic Inequality
Today,/the world is experiencing unprecedented levels of economic inequality. In America,/the top 20 percent of the population/owns close to 90 percent of the total wealth in the country. The dream that hard work and honesty will lead to success/is increasingly out of reach for many. This pattern will never change/if the wealthy feel that they are free to do/whatever will serve their self-interest. There’s every reason to think/that things will only get worse.
Economic inequality/is something everyone should be concerned about. Social mobility, physical health, and social trust/all decline as inequality increases. Not only that,/violence and crime increase/as economic inequality increases. These outcomes are felt across all levels of society. Even people at the top experience these outcomes.
To sum up,/economic inequality is not just a personal issue,/or even a national issue. It is a matter of great international concern. In 2021,/research showed/that just the 10 richest individuals in the world/owned a greater amount of wealth/than the bottom 3.1 billion people. And inequality is expected to increase.
Little Nudges
So what can we do? It seems/that the situation is out of control/and there is nothing we can do about it. But, in fact,/laboratory research has been finding/that small nudges in certain directions,/small changes in people’s values,/can restore levels of empathy. Reminding people of the benefits of cooperation,/or the advantages of community,/can lead wealthier individuals to be just as generous and empathetic/as poor people.
In one study,/people were asked to watch a short video about childhood poverty/that served as a reminder of the needs of others. After watching the video,/researchers looked at how willing people were/to help a stranger. Rich people/became just as generous and willing to help out a stranger/as poor people. This finding suggests/that these differences in empathy and fellow feeling are not innate/but are easily influenced/by slight changes in people’s values/and by little nudges toward compassion and empathy.
Beyond the walls of his lab,/Piff feels he is beginning to see signs of change in society. Bill Gates,/one of the world’s wealthiest people,/has called inequality the greatest challenge of our time. He has talked about what must be done to combat it,/saying,/“Humanity’s greatest advances are not in its discoveries/—but in how those discoveries are applied to reduce inequity.” And there’s the Giving Pledge,/in which more than 100 of America’s wealthiest people are pledging/half of their fortunes to charity. They are using their own economic resources/to combat inequality. In the end,/they hope to restore people’s faith/that hard work and honesty will lead to a better life/for themselves and their children.
If the rich would share their wealth with the poor,/inequality might be solved. But this does not seem to be happening. Paul Piff,/an American social psychologist,/wanted to find out why.
Do rich people think and act differently from poor people? Paul Piff has explored this question/in dozens of experiments. His findings suggest/that as people’s wealth increases,/so do their feelings of entitlement and their self-interest,/but their empathy and compassion decrease. Piff worries/that as economic inequality increases,/the idea that everyone has an equal opportunity to succeed and prosper/will suffer.
A Rigged Game
In one interesting experiment,/people played a board game/in which two players compete/in buying and selling land, buildings, and houses. The goal is to see/who ends up with the most money and property. Each player begins with the same amount of money/(of course,/it is play money)/and each must follow the same rules.
Piff decided to change the game. He wanted to see/what would happen if the game were rigged/so that one player got twice as much money as the other player/and the rules also worked in favor of the “rich” player. More than 100 pairs of strangers/were asked to be either a “rich” player or a “poor” player/in a rigged game. Through hidden cameras,/Piff watched what happened.
As the game went on,/dramatic differences appeared between the two players. The rich players/began to show signs of power and celebration. They became loud/and slapped their pieces down on the board. They took more than their share of the pretzels/which the researchers had provided. The rich players became more boastful. They were less and less sensitive/to the plight of the poor players. In some cases,/they were actually rude.
According to Piff,/the rigged game can be used/as a metaphor for understanding a society/in which a few people have a lot more wealth and status/than the rest of the people.
In dozens of studies involving thousands of participants,/Piff is finding/that as people get richer,/they lose their sense of compassion/and they feel an increased sense of entitlement. Wealthier individuals are actually more likely to feel/that greed is good/and that the pursuit of self-interest is good and moral.
Other Experiments
Piff set up other experiments. He asked people about their family income,/level of education,/financial security,/and how much they valued the way they look. Piff even tested/how much time participants spent looking at themselves in the mirror. He found/that rich people looked at themselves more often/and were more narcissistic.
Piff also looked at helping behavior. He was interested in/who is more likely to offer help to another person. Rich and poor members of the community/were each given $10. They were told/that they could keep it all for themselves/or share a portion of it with a stranger. The researchers monitored how much people gave. The poorer people,/who had incomes between $15,000 and $25,000 a year,/gave 44 percent more of their money to the stranger/than did people making between $150,000 and $200,000 a year.
Another study examined/whether anybody would take candy/that was reserved for children/who were participating in a developmental program. People who felt rich/took twice as much candy/as those who felt poor.
Of course,/it is not only wealthy people/who show these patterns of behavior. In fact,/most of us in our regular daily lives/struggle to decide/when or whether to put our own interests/above the interests of other people. This is understandable/because most people like to think/that we all have an equal opportunity/to succeed and prosper/as long as we apply ourselves and work hard. Sometimes/we need to put our own interests first. But Piff’s studies show/that the wealthier people are,/the more likely they are to pursue personal success/without thinking about others.
Economic Inequality
Today,/the world is experiencing unprecedented levels of economic inequality. In America,/the top 20 percent of the population/owns close to 90 percent of the total wealth in the country. The dream that hard work and honesty will lead to success/is increasingly out of reach for many. This pattern will never change/if the wealthy feel that they are free to do/whatever will serve their self-interest. There’s every reason to think/that things will only get worse.
Economic inequality/is something everyone should be concerned about. Social mobility, physical health, and social trust/all decline as inequality increases. Not only that,/violence and crime increase/as economic inequality increases. These outcomes are felt across all levels of society. Even people at the top experience these outcomes.
To sum up,/economic inequality is not just a personal issue,/or even a national issue. It is a matter of great international concern. In 2021,/research showed/that just the 10 richest individuals in the world/owned a greater amount of wealth/than the bottom 3.1 billion people. And inequality is expected to increase.
Little Nudges
So what can we do? It seems/that the situation is out of control/and there is nothing we can do about it. But, in fact,/laboratory research has been finding/that small nudges in certain directions,/small changes in people’s values,/can restore levels of empathy. Reminding people of the benefits of cooperation,/or the advantages of community,/can lead wealthier individuals to be just as generous and empathetic/as poor people.
In one study,/people were asked to watch a short video about childhood poverty/that served as a reminder of the needs of others. After watching the video,/researchers looked at how willing people were/to help a stranger. Rich people/became just as generous and willing to help out a stranger/as poor people. This finding suggests/that these differences in empathy and fellow feeling are not innate/but are easily influenced/by slight changes in people’s values/and by little nudges toward compassion and empathy.
Beyond the walls of his lab,/Piff feels he is beginning to see signs of change in society. Bill Gates,/one of the world’s wealthiest people,/has called inequality the greatest challenge of our time. He has talked about what must be done to combat it,/saying,/“Humanity’s greatest advances are not in its discoveries/—but in how those discoveries are applied to reduce inequity.” And there’s the Giving Pledge,/in which more than 100 of America’s wealthiest people are pledging/half of their fortunes to charity. They are using their own economic resources/to combat inequality. In the end,/they hope to restore people’s faith/that hard work and honesty will lead to a better life/for themselves and their children.