Find out if you care about about yourself more or others with this simple question

October 11, 2016 by Joshua
in Choosing/Decision-Making

You know flying in planes pollutes. You know your pollution hurts others. You want people to pollute less, knowing they’ll have to change their behavior.

The question is if you would pollute less yourself if you had to change your behavior. Most people think of themselves as caring about others and willing to sacrifice for some greater good.

Consider these two options:

Option 1: You fly to some destination you like, knowing it will pollute some amount, say 100 barrels of jet fuel that you’re responsible for.

Option 2: I have a magic wand that will transport you instantly to the same destination, but for it to work, you would have to pour half the amount of fuel the plane ride would have caused into the ocean. So you’d have to pour 50 barrels of jet fuel into the ocean by hand.

Which option would you choose—to fly regular or to pollute half as much, but you’d have to pour the fuel out yourself?

What option do you think more people choose?

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