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Zhong and her colleagues have investigated the link between lighting levels and behavior in several studies with implications or the design of indoor and outdoor public and private spaces – anyplace where ethical behavior is desired. Although the study was designed so that darkness did not have any effect on actual anonymity, it “increased morally questionable behaviors.” In the experiments conducted, the darker conditions were created by removing 8 fluorescent ceiling mounted lights in a 15 x 14 foot room (4 lights in place instead of 12, no information on objective measures of these light levels) or by putting on sunglasses (no objective information on the darkness of the tint).
Chen-Bo Zhong, Vanessa Bohns, and Francesca Gino. “Good Lamps are the Best Police: Darkness Increases Dishonesty and Self-Interested Behavior.” Psychological Science, in press.
