It turns out that a trip to the grocery store can be quite telling about a person—and it has more to do with the shopping cart itself than what goes in it. What became known as the “shopping cart theory” is the belief that a person’s choice to return a shopping cart to its proper place at the grocery store or leave it wherever is most convenient reveals a bit about his or her moral character.
While it’s not an actual proven theory, it is one that has sparked various studies and heated internet discussions. Dallas resident Erasmo Estrada read about it online and found it to be a rather interesting concept.
“The theory is funny and can make a lot of sense on the surface level that a person’s ‘good’ character can be determined from something so small and then be extrapolated to other aspects of their life,” he said. “If you leave shopping carts out freely, are you someone who also throws garbage outside your car, treats service employees poorly, cuts in line, and cuts people off on the road?”
Estrada is not one of those people, though (at least according to the shopping cart theory). He said he returns his cart to the cart rack outside if it is available.
“If not, you’ve got to go take that baby back inside,” he said. “What if it hits someone’s car out there? A strategy I don’t really use is parking close to racks, but it’s not that big of deal for me either way.”
New York City resident Alicia Wyatt said it is a pet peeve of hers when people leave carts out, especially when they are left in parking spots.
“I think where a person leaves a shopping cart is indicative of how considerate they are about their surroundings and other people,” she said.
Wyatt almost always returns her cart but said where she does so is contingent upon where she parked and/or what options the store has.
“If I parked far from the door, then I will return it to a cart rack,” she said. “If I parked close to the front door, then I will return it to the store. If there is no cart return or if the cart return is full, then 95 percent of the time I will return to the store. The 5 percent that I may not return it is usually because I am running late, and I am very far from the door, and there is lots of traffic.”
Some individuals, such as Dallas resident Alexis Derrow, feel a sense of responsibility to ensure that they take their carts to the appropriate place. She said she returns her cart to the cart corral or to the store—whichever is closer.
“I do one of those two things because we live in a society, and if we don’t do civil acts, society breaks down,” she said. “Dramatic? I think not.”
Why is it that some people feel comfortable leaving their shopping carts anywhere they feel like doing so, while others take time to return them to designated cart racks or back to the front of the store? Wyatt said it’s a result of individuals having different understandings of what being thoughtful and mindful of others entails.
“If people aren’t taught that returning shopping carts where they found them is considerate, then they often think it’s not a big deal not to return them,” she said. “If they watched their parents be oblivious to others, then they most likely also learned to be oblivious. Then there are some people who really do think returning a cart is beneath them because that’s what store employees are for.”
This has become a rather controversial topic and sparked debates regarding whether or not a lack of concern for returning a cart also indicates a sense of entitlement. Estrada said the decision to leave a shopping cart where it doesn’t belong certainly could be an attitude of “it’s not my problem” and focusing on oneself as being the most important priority. However, he also said that it is silly to assume that someone is a bad person for not returning a cart, as we are not always aware of other people’s situations.
“Maybe a person is shopping with their children and has them in the car and doesn’t want them by themselves while they return the cart (I’m not a parent, and I don’t know if this is valid, so don’t judge me),” he said. “Or they got an emergency call finding out their loved one is in the hospital. Or they saw a snake and got scared.”
Because of the many unknowns of individuals’ circumstances, Estrada advises people not to be so quick to judge others for their decisions in the grocery store parking lot and compared the shopping cart issue to another familiar situation.
“It’s like when a car is parked over the line,” he said. “What if they weren’t the original offender and that was the only room they had to park? But then when the original offender leaves, the next person is left looking like a fool. It can happen to you.”
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