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- Hey, everyone, it's Dr. Jen,

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and welcome back to
"60-Second Psychology",

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where I talk about a theory, concept,

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or psychological phenomenon
in just 60 seconds.

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Today's topic, The Bystander Effect.

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If you witnessed a person in
trouble right in front of you,

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you take action to help the person, right?

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Maybe not.

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The Bystander Effect

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is a strange psychological phenomenon

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that's been observed in groups of people.

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It's characterized by the
un unlikeliness of a group

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to help an individual in distress.

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The bigger the group of witnesses,

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the less likely people in
the group will be to help.

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Here's why.

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Studies by psychologists
Bibb Latane and John Darley

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found that the amount of time
it takes witnesses to offer

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or seek help when a stranger is in need

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increases when there are
more witnesses nearby.

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Latane also found that the
percentage of witnesses

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that offer help decreases

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the more witnesses that are around.

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His 1969 study found that 70% of people

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would help a woman in distress

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when they were the only witness,

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but only about 40% offered assistance

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when other people were also present.

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The Bystander Effect could have

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two major contributing factors.

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First, diffusion of responsibility,

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which means that because
there are others around,

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individuals don't feel as
much pressure to take action.

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Second, social acceptance may have a role.

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When other witnesses fail
to react to an incident,

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individuals often take
this as a social signal

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that a response is not
needed or not appropriate.

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To summarize, emergencies are
often chaotic and confusing.

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When more witnesses are around,

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we may often look to others to react

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or determine the appropriate behavior.

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The good news is that recently,

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psychologists have found
that if one person in a crowd

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does help a person in distress,

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then everybody else in that crowd

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is also more likely to help.

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Have you ever been in
a bystander situation?

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Were you the first to act?

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Did you hold back,

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or were you inspired by someone
else swinging into action?

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Another thing, if you're
ever that person in distress,

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try to focus on one person in the crowd,

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lock eyes and ask for help.

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Often, this will spur
the crowd into action.

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Let me know what you think
in the comments below,

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and as always,

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please like and subscribe
if you enjoyed this video,

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and I'll see you in the next one.

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Bye.

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(bright subtle music)