I n d ep en d en t
Issue no.
S t u de nt
V o i c e
o f
B o is e
S tate
Sin c e
1933
13
September 2012
Volume 25
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Boise, Idaho
27
First issue free
Help a Bronco out
[Exploring the bystander effect on campus]
Mallory Barker Staff Writer
In an attempt to assess the bystander effect in the Boise State community, a (non-scientific, unofficial) field study consisting of four Boise State students dropping their belongings in crowded areas was conducted to observe those who stopped to help the subjects collect their items, and those who did not. The test was designed by The Arbiter and discussed with Kyle Conlon, senior lecturer of Social Psychology and Mary Pritchard, Ph.D., social psychology professor.
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Other instances of the bystander effect that might be familiar
October 2009 An article published by CNN stated as many as 20 people watched as a 15-yearold California girl was allegedly gang raped and beaten outside a high school homecoming dance for more than three hours.
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April 2010 The New York Post wrote of a homeless man who was stabbed after saving a woman from an attacker. He laid dying in a pool of blood for more than an hour as nearly 25 people strolled past him.
CODY FINNEY/THE ARBITER
During the experiment, some Broncos helped. Others walked by and in this case flipped the bird, too.
Psychology Today defines the bystander effect as “the presence of others hinder(ing) an individual from intervening in an emergency situation.” Mary Pritchard, Ph.D.,
elaborated this definition. “The more people who are around you in an event, the less likely you are to receive help,” she said.
The history
The field study
The bystander effect is a phenomenon that was first observed in the case of Kitty Genovese’s murder in 1964. For nearly half an hour Genovese was murdered in a visible stairwell outside of her apartment in New York. A total of 38 of Genovese’s neighbors heard her screams or witnessed the murder itself, none of whom called the police or intervened. One witness did call the police after the murder, but called a friend from out of town to ask for advice first. In 1968, social psychologists John Darley from New York University and Bibb Latane from Columbia University created a test in response to the tragedy of Genovese. They published their results in The Journal of Personality and Social Psychology in an article titled “Bystander Intervention in Emergencies: Diffusion of Responsibility.”
The first drop was staged on the Quad in front of about seven people, none of whom stopped to help. Gregerson dropped her books in front of the Interactive Learning Center in front of a group of at least 12 people, not one person stopped to help. Flake dropped his books in front of one man, who looked at his books, sidestepped them, gave a slight smirk and continued on his way. The second drop was in front of two middle-aged men who work on campus both stopped to help. Valladolid dropped her books three separate times, in the three different locations. Her last drop was done in front of one man, while on the stairs of the Interactive Learning Center. He immediately stopped to help her. Out of a total of 11 drops, the subjects were helped six times. Under these circumstances, it would appear that Boise State is helpful a little more than half of the time.
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What people are saying Kevin Skidmore, communication professor, encouraged students to overcome this phenomenon by developing the attitude of “do to others what you would have them do to you.” “You’re much more likely to get help on Boise Sate’s campus than if you went to NYU, there is more of that helping mentality that those smaller towns just tend to have,” Pritchard said. “He dropped stuff and it is common courtesy to help,” said Nicole Thomas one of the people who stopped to help during the field study. “Back in Thailand, my country, it is traditional to help when you see people struggling,” said Juan Koon, a chemistry major who stopped to help Valladolid.
October 2011 The New Yorker wrote about China’s bystander effect after a 2-year old girl was run over, twice and more than a dozen people walked by as she lay in the street. November 2011 The Washington Post wrote an opinion article on the bystander effect after Jayna Murray was murdered inside a Lululemon Athletica store in Maryland and two Apple Store employees next door, who heard cries for help and did nothing.
The participants Kelsey Gregerson, 19-year-old undecided freshman Amanda Gilmore, 19-year-old sophomore history major Alexa Valladolid, 19-year-old sophomore engineering major Hamilton Flake, 20-year-old sophomore engineering major
5 4 3 2
The bystander needs to
implement that response.
The bystander needs to decide on the appropriate helping response.
The bystander needs to take responsibility for helping, but might avoid taking respon-
sibility by assuming that somebody else will (diffusion of responsibility).
The bystander needs to identify the event as some form of emergency.
The bystander needs to notice an event is taking place.
The Steps to helping
What is the bystander effect
Page Design Bryan Talbot/THE ARBITER