Assumption When someone is hurt you would help them ? Reality The more people that witness someone in need, the less likely you are to help. SMSC provision

 If your stuck in a small village or in the middle of Kingston town centre in which location do you think you would be offered help the quickest ?  People have tested this and the answer is the country road. But why do you think this is ?

The Bystander Effect  The bystander effect is the somewhat controversial name given to a social psychological phenomenon in cases where individuals do not offer help in an emergency situation when other people are present. The probability of help has in the past been thought to be inversely proportional to the number of bystanders. In other words, the greater the number of bystanders, the less likely it is that any one of them will help.  Simply put, the more people around the less likely anyone will do anything.

Smoke in the Room Imagine smoke starts to fill your form room very slowly. You would think that everyone would spring into action. This may not be the case. Research has shown that on your own in the room a person would take responsibility and act. But in a room of 29 other students often, as no one else is reacting you may just do nothing. If no one else is panicking or acting on the smoke why should you ?

The good Samaritan hypocrisy In one study, students are asked to teach the good Samaritan story. They have to walk across the university camp us to do so. Half are told they are starting right away. The other half are told they have an hour. An actor is placed on route who is on floor acting in distress. 80% percent of those in a rush did not stop. Some stepping over the man in “need”. Of those with time, still only 80% stopped to help.

What this tells us.  When in a group we need to step up and take responsibility. As if you don’t, the odds and nature of human phycology is that no one else will.