One of the classic studies in social psychology that is still very relevant today is the Bystander Effect. The Bystander Effect is a psychological phenomenon in which a bystander doesn’t help someone in need of aid due to being surrounded by a group of people, and proceeds as a witness. An experiment showcasing The Bystander Effect was conducted by psychologists John Darley and Bibb Latené in 1964. The idea for the experiment came about after the public murder of Kitty Genovese. Darley and Latené made an experiment testing how subjects would react to someone in danger around a group of a people, versus being around no one. Bibb Latené is a famous American psychologist, who is well known for his experimentation with the bystander effect. He
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There wondered why there such a lack of concern from the neighbors, Darley and Latené looked to research this event through creating a social psychology experiment involving college students talking to pre-recorded voices, not knowing that the voices were pre-recorded. One experiment was done using a one-on-one conversation with a pre-recorded voice and the other was done using a conversation with a group of pre-recorded voices. One of the voices explains to the participant that he is prone to seizures and suddenly starts to experience a seizure while the participant can only hear the voice having a seizure. The experiment measures how long it takes for the participant to leave and ask for help. In the group conversations, 31% of the subjects reacted, while in the one-on-one conversations, 85% reacted. the reason subjects didn’t react was because they assume someone else will intervene, or that because no one else is reacting the subject feels no desire to help. People can also be self conscious and not want to look bad in front of bystanders, or fear rejection, or assume that others are more experienced to …show more content…
It gives an insight on how society responds around bullying. Having society understanding this phenomenon can help avoid it from occurring. If we know that a situation is happening, but don’t feel a need to help, we can understand that that feeling is wrong, and we should
There wondered why there such a lack of concern from the neighbors, Darley and Latené looked to research this event through creating a social psychology experiment involving college students talking to pre-recorded voices, not knowing that the voices were pre-recorded. One experiment was done using a one-on-one conversation with a pre-recorded voice and the other was done using a conversation with a group of pre-recorded voices. One of the voices explains to the participant that he is prone to seizures and suddenly starts to experience a seizure while the participant can only hear the voice having a seizure. The experiment measures how long it takes for the participant to leave and ask for help. In the group conversations, 31% of the subjects reacted, while in the one-on-one conversations, 85% reacted. the reason subjects didn’t react was because they assume someone else will intervene, or that because no one else is reacting the subject feels no desire to help. People can also be self conscious and not want to look bad in front of bystanders, or fear rejection, or assume that others are more experienced to …show more content…
It gives an insight on how society responds around bullying. Having society understanding this phenomenon can help avoid it from occurring. If we know that a situation is happening, but don’t feel a need to help, we can understand that that feeling is wrong, and we should