We hear of people being attacked or assaulted while bystanders choose to record the assault on their phones rather than dial 911 for help. For instance, in 2021 a young woman was raped on the city’s transit system in Philadelphia while bystanders did not call for help, or try to intervene as found on surveillance cameras on the train.

Help wasn’t called until a transit worker witnessed the attack and called police. Transit police then arrested the suspect.

Not one person on that train called for help.

Another incident of inhumanity was an airline that made an emergency landing in Moscow. The aircraft was on fire and while evacuating passengers seated in and near the front were stealing precious life-saving moments grabbing their belongings from the overhead bins. The fire was at the plane’s rear and the passengers couldn’t pass those blocking the aisle with their ‘stuff’. As a former flight attendant, I know first hand that the crew would have been issuing loud, repeated demands in unison for passengers to exit the aircraft and to leave EVERYTHING behind. People on the tarmac outside the plane were seen with wheeled suitcases and bags. 41 people out of 78 passengers and crew onboard lost their lives because they couldn’t evacuate in time. Two of those passengers were children.

I understand we aren’t thinking clearly during an emergency, but how difficult is it to evacuate quickly seeing how there’s a fire at the rear of the plane, and no doubt everyone was rushing forward to the exit? How could someone take that extra time, blocking others from exiting the burning aircraft?

What happened to humanity? When did possessions and social media ‘likes’ surpass the value of a human being?

Bystander effect

Psychology Today suggests three factors involved with the bystander effect.

1. A witness is less likely to provide assistance or call for help when there are many other people around. The more bystanders present, the less likely it is that anyone will step in to help. Psychologists refer to this phenomenon as the diffusion of responsibility, where individuals assume that someone else will take action.
2. Social influence will also determine the probability of helping during a crisis. This phenomenon is when bystanders watch to see what others are doing and follow suit. If no one intervenes or calls for help, then they won’t either. They are influenced by the behaviour of those around them, regardless of how urgent the situation may be.

A young 11-year-old girl in Toronto was lost after being dismissed from school early when she got onto the wrong streetcar. Once she realized how unfamiliar her surroundings were she went into a public library hoping to use their phone to call her mom. Unfortunately, the staff denied her access to the phone. She was told to use a pay phone outside. The young girl.. still elementary school age informed the staff she didn’t know how to use the pay phone. The staff dismissed her.

Left crying on the corner a stranger approached her and allowed the young girl to use their phone.

It would have been safer had the library staff simply allowed the 11-year-old to use their work phone.

Examples of the bystander effect taken from Psych Central

1. Ignoring bullying or cyberbullying
2. Video recording an assault etc; rather than calling 911
3. Assuming someone else will help
4. Walking past a person lying on the street
5. Indifferent about climate change

The Toronto Public Library issued a strong apology, but their staff still sent a lost child onto the street.

The mother informed the library, and the media about what could have been a very dangerous situation. Hopefully, the staff have also been thoroughly informed.

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This post was previously published on The Lifestyle Cafe.

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You may also like these posts on The Good Men Project:

White Fragility: Talking to White People About Racism

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The Lack of Gentle Platonic Touch in Men’s Lives is a Killer

What We Talk About When We Talk About Men

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