In June 2024, Dobson posted a 17-second TikTok clip saying she wouldn't return her grocery shopping cart, which caused quite a stir on social media. She argued how it was inconvenient for her to leave her kids in the car alone so she could push it back to the cart corral.
The video quickly sparked online outrage over the abandoned cart. Dobson’s justification of her actions in the video seemed unconvincing to many who shared their thoughts in the comment section arguing that she could still have “walked and chewed gum” simultaneously.
In a later video, Dobson returned a shopping cart to the front of the grocery store but pointed out she was not with her kids. Another video shows her saying it's a judgment call. You need to use your intuition but still keep your family safe.
It’s not uncommon to have to remove a shopping cart from the driveway as you park or exit a shopping mall. Whatever your take on Dobson’s situation inspired the shopping cart theory and how it reveals a person's moral character.
Let’s explore further—
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Understanding the Shopping Cart Theory?
Can the “shopping cart theory” tell whether someone is a bad person or not? The first time this idea came up was in a 2017 Scientific American article by Krystal D’Costa. She pointed out reasons such as bad weather, distance of parking spot, unattended children, disability, and negligence as some of the top reasons people abandon their shopping cart. Her article later found its way online as a meme on 4chan attributing it as a litmus test of a person’s ability to self-govern. It’s not just about the slogan but more about the principle. Some have expanded this theory to apply to engineering, product, or customer support teams as a metric for measuring efficiency.
How the Shopping cart theory can be applied in the workplace
The shopping cart theory is like how teams work in a company. When used in a company's culture, teams work better and get more done. Here are some key ideas that support its use.
Simplicity. You pull a shopping cart from somewhere before you push it to the parking spot. You know someone else might need it while shopping. In that regard, doesn’t it make sense to return it? Some of the obvious lessons we can pick from a person returning their shopping cart without being coerced are applicable in workplaces. An apex example is where team members can help one another with simple tasks like cleaning up after using common spaces.
Responsibility. When you return a shopping cart it shows a sign of responsibility over your actions. Teams aligned with the shopping cart theory can always be relied upon to deliver results while remaining accountable for their actions.
World conscious. You don’t need to launch a rocket to Mars or find a cure for cancer to make a difference in the world. Convenient tasks like returning your shopping cart to its designated spot shouldn't be a bother. In the workplace, individuals or teams following the shopping cart theory are focused on delivering for the company and the entire industry.
But how are these principles applied in a normal office setting?
Engineers and product teams—write clean, well-documented code in a codebase that others can easily understand, helping fix errors and save time.
Customer support and sales teams—document their work, personalize customer inquiries, and ensure timely follow-ups. Using AI tools like the Lookfor sales assistant can make a significant difference.
What was a silly internet meme is now a part of culture. Remember, not returning the shopping cart is not illegal. Neither is there an obligation for shoppers to do so.
That's where the moral measure comes into the picture. Are you capable of self-governing without any supervision? In a 2008 study, researchers found that people were more likely to break other rules if they saw others doing so. For example, 69% of people in a graffiti-covered alley littered, compared to 33% in a clean alley.
Define self-governing
Aristotle strongly believed that individuals naturally pick virtue and self-improvement in their self-governance. The concept of self-governance is where individuals are responsible for their own regulation without interacting with any outside authority. Simply means doing the ‘right’ and virtuous thing.
Krystal’s study looks into how people return carts according to social norms. First, people tend to act in a certain way which impacts how people will judge us. An obvious example is whispering while in a library which is standard practice and expected of everyone. Alternatively, we tend to copy the conventional or accepted behavior of others. An example is brushing the teeth twice which is the norm.
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Problems with shopping cart theory
A logical argument is how we can reduce the “morality” of a person to their physical ability to move around a grocery cart. Sadly, not everyone can perform this action with varying reasons ranging from physical inability to inability to leave their children unattended, among others. Aside from this case of ableism, you cannot use physical capability as your benchmark
when proving someone is good or bad.
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Key takeaway: Decisive or not?
Some argue returning a shopping cart releases some form of dopamine in the brain. This generates a good feeling. It’s such a small and meaningless task but takes some amount of effort and discipline to do it every time you leave the grocery store. To wrap up, it still cannot be a measure of one's virtue. Drawing such a conclusion will have to consider other factors to get a better idea of a person or situation. However, the principle behind the shopping cart theory does make sense.
