Every Introduction to Psychology and Social Psychology course has a discussion about the bystander effect. And, inevitably, the phenomenon is coupled with the story about Kitty Genovese. Kitty was a New York City bartender who was killed near her residence. According to the story, multiple people heard Kitty’s screams for help, but they did nothing.
The Bystander Effect is when the presence of other people discourages others from acting. We see this happen all the time. We regularly pass people on the highway who are stranded and need help. (I know this is simplistic, as there are many other factors at work, but this is a legit example.) Typically, the bystander effect occurs when there is an emergency situation or a bully.
Despite the neatness of the Kitty Genovese story in illustrating this phenomenon, the story is largely inaccurate. The New York Times had originally posted that 37 witnesses saw or heard the attack (later corrected to 38 witnesses). Further research has found this number to be inaccurate. The story usually continues by discussing how no one called police. That is also incorrect. There were several individuals who called the police during the attack. Kitty was killed. People did witness, and some did act to help her. Others did not help. The responsiveness of the police likely also contributed. It was a series of cascading failures that led to Kitty’s murder, not just bystander apathy.
Interestingly, the internet and social media have become mediums to mitigate this phenomenon. “Karens” are being recorded and broadcasted so people can shame them. Is is working? I’m not sure, but we are seeing regular recordings of people standing up to racist bullies. It would be interesting to see if these videos are helping people combat the bystander effect.