This observational study examined whether the physical condition of a quarter influences the likelihood that college students at California State University, Monterey Bay (CSUMB) will attempt to pick it up. Using a randomized procedure, either a clean or dirty quarter was discreetly placed in a public location, and students' pickup attempts were recorded. The sample included 75 total observations, with 39 trials involving clean coins and 36 involving dirty coins. A two-sample t-test was used to compare the average number of pickup attempts between the two groups. Although students appeared slightly more inclined to pick up clean coins (mean = 0.11) compared to dirty ones (mean = 0.10), this difference was not statistically significant (t = 0.0946, p = 0.4624). Results suggest that coin cleanliness does not significantly influence behavior in this context. Limitations include the observational nature of the study, lack of random sampling, and uncontrolled variables such as time of day and distractions. Future research could investigate how location, currency value, or digital distraction (e.g., phone use) affects the likelihood of picking up found money.

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