PARKING LOT WARS A REMNANT OF OUR ANCESTORS, STUDY SAYS.

Byline: Mary F. Pols Daily News Staff Writer

The lone palm beckons, its slim fronds offering a smidgen of shade in the sweltering parking lot at the Topanga Plaza mall.

A shopper is about to vacate the parking spot under the tree. Her purchases are tucked in the trunk, her seat belt is fastened, the brake lights are on. In mere seconds, the space will be gloriously empty, ready for you to slide right into.

Unless you have the temerity to honk, in which case researchers say you can expect to wait nearly twice as long for that prized parking spot.

In a study published in this week's Journal of Applied Social Psychology, researchers who observed 450 drivers entering and exiting mall parking lots in Atlanta, Ga., found that people become more reluctant to give up a parking space if they think someone else wants it.

What this boils down to, said Penn State social psychology Professor Barry Ruback, who co-wrote the study, is that human beings may have evolved, but they haven't given up their roots as territorial creatures.

``This is just part of our heritage as animals,'' Ruback said.

On average, it takes a person pulling out of a parking space 26.5 seconds to get in the car, put on the seat belt and then back out, Ruback said. If there is someone lurking in another car, ready to pounce on the space, drivers tend to dawdle a little, upping departure time to an average 31 seconds.

If the waiting driver gets uppity, inching forward toward the spot, honking at the departing driver or otherwise crowding them, Ruback said human beings really dig into their spot, staying an average of 43 seconds, even though it's counterproductive. After all, they were on the way out.

``Protecting a parking space when you are about to leave doesn't make much sense,'' he said.

Ruback also found that men were more prone to protecting their territory - departing slower - if the driver behind them was in a lower-status car. Pressure from another driver in a fancy car propelled them out of a spot faster, according to his research.

Absurd or not, Ruback said, such behavior can't be helped. He explains it as being territorial, not unlike the way our ancestors might have felt about protecting a particularly fruitful hunting area. He has done similar research on public telephones, park benches and library chairs, finding with each study that people regard all three as public property until they are actually using it. Then it becomes theirs.

Approached in several busy parking lots Monday, many Los Angeles residents pleaded politeness, saying they rush to vacate spots if they see someone waiting.

``I want to be courteous so I get out as fast as I can,'' said one Encino woman as she began to back out of her spot close to the Topanga Plaza entrance. Just then, the motorist behind her hit his horn.

``See, he's honking,'' she said. ``I've got to go.''

But Ruback said his study shows that people overestimate their own politeness. What many told him in his research usually contrasted with their actual behavior, he said.

``We think of ourselves as more polite than we actually are,'' Ruback said.

As Woodland Hills resident Doug Raleigh prepared to ease his red Ford Thunderbird out of a shady spot outside Starbucks in 96-degree heat Monday, he said he makes every effort to give a friendly wave and a shout to someone waiting patiently to let them know he's on his way out.

``Obviously, if they honk, that throws a different light into the situation,'' Raleigh said. ``I might not be so inclined to hurry.''

Bob Sandler, a Woodland Hills resident who is in and out of parking lots all day because he is a salesman, said Ruback's findings fit with his own experience.

``If somebody is nasty enough to honk, I will wait a little longer to back out,'' he said.