If you've been to a mall this holiday season, you probably regret it. One part that's always infuriating is trying to park. Even if you catch a lucky break and see someone backing out of a good spot, don't expect the driver to pick up the pace for you. But the thing is, it might not be his or her fault - humans may be hard wired to subtly act like jerks in parking lots.
"Most people think they leave faster, but in reality, they take more time to leave when another car waits near their space," said Penn State researcher Barry Ruback, professor of sociology and crime, law and justice, who studied parking lot behavior and published his findings in the Journal of Applied Social Psychology back in 1997.
According to the study, it took drivers 32.2 seconds to pull out of a parking space - but if someone was waiting for the space, it took seven seconds longer.
"Like our ancestors, we humans still defend territories, but we do so even when they are temporary public areas."
And don't think leaning on the horn will speed things along.
"If the other driver honks," Ruback said, "people will really slow down their departure just to occupy the parking space a little longer."
