Could East German upbringing lead people to cheat more?

In many ways, life in communist East Germany rewarded the disobedient. While law-abiding citizens endured scarcity, their rule-breaking brethren reaped rewards from the black market. But with spies everywhere, engaging with the economic underground required deception, even the leading of double lives. 

Turns out, this chicanery may have left an enduring mark: People who came from an East German background cheated twice as much as those who came from a West German background when playing a simple game in which a small sum of money was at stake, according to a recent studypublished by researchers at Duke University and the University of Munich. What's more, the longer participants had lived under communism, the more likely they were to cheat. 

The paper's authors asked a random sample of more than 250 Germans from around Berlin to identify their family background (East or West) and then play a game in which they could win up to 6 euros. The rules were simple: roll a die 40 times and, before each roll, choose either the top or the bottom side of the die. Then write down the number of dots on the preselected side after the die lands. At the end of the game, participants would hand in their recorded numbers, and one of the rolls would be chosen at random. The payout would be 1 euro for every dot from that roll. More high rolls, then, meant a better shot at more money. 

The catch? Participants weren't asked to tell the researchers ahead of time whether they'd chosen the top or the bottom side of the die.