-Why Don’t People Help in a Crisis?--

In 1964, the New York City murder of Kitty Genovese was made famous around the world, but not for the usual reasons one might suspect. Her death, a stabbing, was not unusual, but the fact that the 38 witnesses did not come to her aid or call the police in the half hour of the crime was. Why didn’t these people help in her crisis?

There are many factors that explain the answer to this serious question, explaining people’s lack of response to others’ distress. According to Professors Darley and Latané, a "bystander’s reactions are shaped by the actions of others." A person is more likely to fail to come to the aid of another if in a crowd, than if they are alone. Why is this so?

Darley and Latané write that in order for a person to act in a crisis they must "notice that something is happening, interpret that event as an emergency and decide that they have personal responsibility for intervention." These three things are vital for a witness to come forward to help, but can be strongly inhibited if a crowd is present.

In the case of an emergency a witness must first notice that something is wrong and interpret that event as an emergency. If they are in a crowd they will more likely dismiss the case as something less important. If no one else is reacting than it must not be a crisis. For instance in the case of the lady with a broken leg, the people passed over her and her cries for help, dismissing her plees as they saw everyone else doing.

A crowd also strongly influences a persons own feelings towards the crisis. As the professors say, "each individual feels that his or her responsibility is diffused and diluted" if they are in the presence of many other bystanders. This I have personally experienced, as I am sure that many others have too, in the case of dogs on the freeway. Many times I have seen a stray dog running loose on the freeway, but have driven on feeling that someone else would take care of the problem. In one case I knew the dog, but dismissed it thinking his owners would take care of it. The dog was hit and killed.

In the case of Kitty Genovese, the 38 witnesses all felt distressed and scared, but were unable to move away from the window. It is true that they must have thought someone else was calling the police, but also they were frozen in panic unable to move away. In such an event they could not even think, only stare.

It is here that I feel the professors left out one important aspect of human nature, fear for our own saftey. A witness will first think, "will I get hurt if I help?" before aiding a victim. In the story Things fall Apart, by Chinua Achebe, the wives of the African tribesman Okonkwo, would not come to the aid of the wife he was severely beating for fear of their own saftey. They would say softly from a distance, "That is enough husband", but would not dare intervene for fear that he would turn his rage onto them.

Professors Darley and Latané answer the question, "Why don’t people help in a crisis?" with the answer that a persons actions are influenced by others. This is very true, but other factors such as fear for one’s own safety also play a part in the reaction. As a whole it is the situation, the person and the emergency that will come together to influence the outcome. But the reasons Darley and Latané give, will help us determine why a person may not come to the aid of another, the why of why people don’t help in a crisis.

In a different way, this also explains the more severe cases studied by the professors as well. The boy attacked on the subway, the woman with a broken leg, the stabbing in the parking lot; in all of these situations the crisis were obvious and still no one assisted the victims. Fear and uncertainty are again the explanation. Eleven people abanded a seventeen year old stab victim and no one went back to help him. I can imagine the frightened group huddled in a separate car, no one offering to return and all of them expecting someone else to do their duty.

A school friend of mine found herself in an emergency not long ago and suffered the same lack of assistance. In the middle of class she began to have convulsions. They grew more violent and more intense with each passing second, but the class sat dumbfounded only able to stare. At last a teacher went to her and attempted to calm her down while barking orders to the class. The police were called and she was rushed away. It was soon found out that this girl had epillepsy and had suffered her first attack. She was fine, but the rest of the class felt disturbed and guilty. They had been so apalled at the sight, so frightened, that they could not even comprehend the idea of helping her. It was not until the spell was broken by the teachers rigid voice that their minds began to function logically again. They did not act immediately because they were scared and no one else was setting an example. If one student had jumped up, they all would have. After such an incident I must agree with Darley and Latané in that indifference is not the cause for inaction.

Instincts tell us to do one thing, logic another, but uncertainty can make people ignore even the most obvious crisis situations. We depend on one another at such times. If only one person would show compassion or concern, the rest of us would most likely do so as well. We need to learn to control fear and put other people’s needs above our own. In an emergency lives are at stake, and if we continue to follow the crowd, lives may be lost. It is important for people to understand why they react the way they do in crisis so they can overcome the factors that contribute to an unsatifactory reaction, and instead react responsibly.

Overall Evaluation: ADEQUATE WRITING