The Human Behavior Experiments: The Bystander Effect 3 major causes of the bystander effect: Audience inhibition (fear of blunders) Pluralistic ignorance Diffusion of responsibility http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4YUMxsj6rl4 (17:40)

Bystander Effect/Diffusion of Responsibility Conditions in which people are more or less likely to help one another. In general…the more people around…the less chance of help….because of… Fear of Blunders More people = more fear of making a mistake 2. Pluralistic Ignorance In ambiguous situations, we look to others for info on what to do and mimic their behavior 3. Diffusion of Responsibility people are less likely to take action or feel a sense of responsibility in the presence of a large group of people individual responsibility to intervene is lessened because it is shared by all of the onlookers

Social Relations--Bystander Problem Percentage attempting to help 90 80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 Number of others presumed available to help 1 2 3 4 Bystander Effect *tendency for any given bystander to be less likely to give aid if other bystanders are present *more that are present, the slower they are to help

Social Relations--Bystander Problem The decision-making process for bystander intervention Notices incident? Interprets incident as emergency/ help needed? Assumes responsibility? Attempts to help No help Yes Individuals who perceive themselves part of a large group of potential interveners experience DIFFUSION OF RESPONSIBILITY, a reluctance to become personally involved.

Factors that reduce bystander effect Bystanders know each other Witnesses have bond with victim Bystanders think victim is especially dependent on them Bystanders have training in emergency intervention Witnesses know about bystander effect

For those who do help people in distress, it was found that most have had some medical, police, first-aid, or CPR training in emergency situations. Another study by Tom Moriarity (1975) arranged 2 experiments: (1) New Yorkers watched as a thief snatched a woman’s suitcase in a restaurant when she left her table (2) People watched a thief grab a portable radio from a beach blanket when the owner left for a few minutes. Most onlookers did nothing. However, it was found that if the victim asked the observer to “keep an eye on my stuff”, almost all bystanders intervened---even to the point of tackling the runaway thief on the beach.

Lessons: *Ask for help **Reduce the ambiguity of the situation, “Someone broke into my house--call the police and give this address” ***Identify specific individuals so they do not dismiss responsibility.