Bystander effect
BY-stan-der ih-FEKT
/ˈbaɪˌstæn.dɚ ɪˈfɛkt/
A social psychological claim that individuals are less likely to offer help to a victim when other people are present.
Driven by diffusion of responsibility and pluralistic ignorance, where each witness assumes someone else will intervene.
The story behind the word. Formulated by social psychologists John Darley and Bibb Latané in 1968 after public outrage over urban inaction during public emergencies in major cities.
Word relationships
- genovese syndrome: Genovese syndrome is an informal historical term named specifically after the Kitty Genovese case.
- bystander intervention: Active intervention by observers to assist an individual in emergency situations.
Commonly confused with
- Diffusion of responsibility: Diffusion of responsibility is the internal mental process causing the observable social phenomenon called the bystander effect.
Word family
- bystander (noun): A person present at an event but taking no active part.
Collocations
- fall victim to the bystander effect
- counteract the bystander effect
- bystander effect phenomenon
Idioms & expressions
- passing the buck
- standing idly by
Example sentences
- "The tragic 1964 murder of Kitty Genovese spurred researchers Latané and Darley to study the bystander effect in depth." Classic Research
- "To overcome the bystander effect during a medical emergency, assign tasks directly to specific individuals." Emergency Preparedness
Memory hook
BY-stander: Standing BY while waiting for someone else to step in. More onlookers, less help.
When not to use
Do not attribute to personal malice or intentional cruelty; bystanders usually fail to act due to cognitive paralysis.
Fun facts
- A lone bystander helps a victim roughly 85% of the time, whereas individuals in groups of five help only 31% of the time!
Related words
Explore more words
accomplice, spectator, groupthink, passivity, altruistic, altruism
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