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hubie [soylentnews.org] writes:

New large-scale research led by the University of Leicester shows that winning does not cause people to cheat, in stark contrast to a previous high-profile study [le.ac.uk]:

A 2016 paper [pnas.org] by Israeli researchers reported a series of experiments, which claimed that winners of skill-based competitions are more likely to steal money in subsequent games of chance against different opponents, as opposed to losers or people who did not see themselves as winners or losers.

This highly-cited study of relatively small sample sizes proposed that competitive winning induces a sense of entitlement that encourages cheating.

But now, an expanded and enhanced study by researchers at the University of Leicester (UK) and the University of Southern California (USA), published today (Wednesday) in the journal Royal Society Open Science, has refuted the original findings.

The international team of researchers found that people with a strong sense of fairness cheat less – regardless of whether they had previously won or lost.

[...] "We were surprised by the findings in the 2016 study, and that's why we wanted to replicate it with substantial sample sizes. The original study's small samples do not have the statistical power to generate firm conclusions.

"We were amazed when it turned out that neither winning nor losing had any effect on cheating although a significant amount of cheating occurred. We have at least provided scientifically sound data that give a clear answer to the question."

Journal Reference:
Andrew M. Colman, Briony D. Pulford, Caren A. Frosch, et al., Does competitive winning increase subsequent cheating? [open], Royal Soc Open Sci, 2022. DOI: 10.1098/rsos.202197 [doi.org]

Original Submission