Psychologist Paul K. Piff, an associate professor of psychology at the University of California, Irvine, has been awarded this year's Economics Ig Nobel Prize for research suggesting that individuals who drive more expensive cars are more likely to engage in poor driving behavior. The award was given for Piff’s 2012 study titled “Higher Social Class Predicts Increased Unethical Behavior,” published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. The research, which has remained relevant over the years, is the result of nearly two decades of study on the relationship between wealth and behavior. At the ceremony on September 3 in Zurich, Switzerland, Piff explained that his team spent about 20 years documenting how rising wealth and increasing money seem to make people more self-interested, entitled, and greedy. He noted that “wealth seems to free people from the burdensome shackles of caring about other humans.” One of the most notable findings from the study was that drivers of expensive, late-model vehicles were significantly more likely to cut off other cars at busy four-way intersections. However, the research didn’t stop at driving behavior. In one experiment, Piff’s lab placed a bowl of candy labeled as being reserved for children and found that wealthier individuals took twice as much as those with less wealth. To highlight this point, Piff brought a canister of candy collected by his 3-year-old son, Oli, from the Museum of Chocolate. He told the audience, “He doesn’t know that I have this,” before helping himself to a piece. In his speech, Piff thanked his collaborators and his wife, Pia Dietze, an assistant professor of psychology at UCI, for their support. He also humorously acknowledged “the global elite” for demonstrating the reproducibility of their findings on a worldwide scale. After a pause for effect, he added, “Taking candy from children is really the least of our concerns.” Piff joins a list of distinguished Ig Nobel honorees from the UC system, including Jaimie Arona Krems from UCLA, who this year won the Peace Prize for research on why people sometimes want vicious friends—a finding that may or may not explain some of the incidents at four-way intersections. The Ig Nobel ceremony featured a trophy shaped like a giant mushroom growing atop a human foot. Interestingly, this image coincides with the experience of being cut off in traffic by someone driving a brand-new BMW, according to some reports. The event, known for its blend of humor and scientific inquiry, celebrates research that initially seems absurd but often leads to meaningful insights.