KEY POINTS:
Would you steal a little girl's purse and pocket the money?
Half of Aucklanders would, judging by an unscientific Herald survey.
The Weekend Herald "lost" 30 purses all over the city. Each contained $5 and had a label inside saying the purse belonged to "Lillie", and included a cellphone number.
Fifteen people phoned to offer to return the purse and the money.
In Mangere, one man took a quick glance around as he put the $5 in his pocket and promptly dropped the purse down a drain.
Others were just as quick to be honest. In Mt Eden, Susie Tasker called from her mobile within minutes of the purse being dropped.
"I've lost my purse before and it's a horrible feeling. But mine was returned and I would always do the same. It's just the right thing to do."
A Reader's Digest survey last week found Auckland was equal eighth most honest out of 32 international cities. The Digest had planted "lost" cellphones.
Organisers of that survey later called the phones to ask for them back. In Auckland, 23 of 30 were returned.
The Herald decided to raise the honesty threshold. Finders had to call a number to return the lost goods.
However, consciences should have been pricked by the colourful clip-clasp purses, which were designed to look like a little girl's.
The purses were dropped on Wednesday and Thursday this week. They were placed in shopping centre car parks or on busy pedestrian routes near shops, to ensure they would be found.
Six were dropped roughly geographically to the north, south, east and west and in the central city.
Southern suburbs performed the worst, with not one of the six purses "lost" there returned.
People on the North Shore proved to be the most honest, returning five out of six purses.
Peter Fraser was delivering milk in Birkenhead when he found one.
"I was going to hand it to the dairy owner, but then I saw the number and called," he said. "I'm a big believer in karma."
There were mixed results out west. The people who found the purses dropped in New Lynn, Glen Eden and Titirangi called the number, but there was no word on those lost in Avondale or Kelston.
The handling of the purse dropped at LynnMall suggests there may be degrees of honesty. A man found it outside the shopping centre and held it up as he walked round the carpark, apparently looking for "Lillie".
He eventually walked into the mall, still carrying the purse openly - but never called the number inside.
It was a similar story in the east, with a 50 per cent honesty rate.
The Herald dropped two purses on Auckland's main street. One was dropped at the bottom of Queen St and one at the top. Neither was returned.
But other central suburbs did better. There were calls from purse-finders in Newmarket, Mt Eden and Ponsonby.
"I don't usually ring cellphones," said 61-year-old Margaret Bongard, who found the Ponsonby purse while shopping. "But I've always taught my children you must do what is right."
Dr Niki Harre, senior lecturer in social psychology at the University of Auckland, said in many cases returning a child's purse would be a bigger reward than pocketing $5.
But even if it was a $50 note, she said, many people would return it because a set of ingrained morals and ethics would come into play.
Dr Harre said geography probably didn't play a major part, as there were too many variables to ensure it was a fair test.
"The fun of ringing and doing a good deed would, for many people, be well worth the $5."
Not Returned
LynnMall shopping centre
Avondale shops
Kelston mall carpark
Mangere Bridge shops
Mangere shopping centre
Otahuhu
Otara shopping centre
Manurewa train station
Clendon shops
Tamaki
Mt Wellington shops
Glen Innes
Northcote Central shops
Queen St (Vulcan Lane)
Queen St (top)
Returned
Great North Rd, New Lynn
Glen Eden shops
Titirangi
Pakuranga shops
Burswood
Eastridge shops
St Heliers beach
Birkenhead, Hinemoa St shops
Glenfield shops
Takapuna, Byron Ave
Belmont shops
Devonport shops
Ponsonby Rd shops
Mt Eden shops
Newmarket
