by Carol Wohlfeil

Created on: November 08, 2008   Last Updated: November 29, 2008

Why are people often afraid to help others? Many blame the recent surge in possible legal consequences. However, this common behavior, often referred to as bystander apathy, more often has its roots in the human psyche.

Kitty Genovese was a young woman returning after work to her home in Queens, New York, in the early hours of the morning in March 1964. As she left her car, she was attacked, stabbed 17 times, and sexually assaulted by a man later identified as Winston Moseley. Although this crime was only one of 9,360 murders in the United States in 1964, it initiated extensive psychological research into the phenomenon which came to be known as bystander apathy. Not only had the attack on Genovese taken over thirty minutes, 38 bystanders witnessed the murder and did nothing to save the woman's life (Gado, 2006). Psychologists have since developed several theories as to the causes of bystander apathy based on psychodynamic, behavioral, and cognitive perspectives.

According to Sigmund Freud's psychodynamic approach to personality, "much of our behavior is motivated by the unconscious" (Feldman, 2005, p. 467). Some psychologists suggest that it is these unconscious mechanisms that cause bystander apathy. Simon Sheppard stated that Neurotic Suspension, "being frozen in a state of neurotic confusionwhen a single stimulus evokes two or more distinct responses," may be a primary factor in bystander apathy. In the Genovese case, bystanders likely experienced conflicting responses, the desire to help and the fear of involvement. Psychologists also suggest that when more than one bystander is present diffusion of responsibility, the feeling that "responsibility to act is shared among those present" (Feldman, 2005, p. 633), can result. Thus, the greater number of bystanders present, the less likely it is that someone will help. This tends to hold true in most situations except when the victim is a friend or acquaintance. In this case, assistance is almost always given quickly regardless of the number of bystanders present because we unconsciously feel greater compassion and responsibility toward someone we know.

Behavioral psychologists suggest that a bystander will observe those around him or her to determine if the situation calls for action. If other bystanders are not assisting, we will assume that the situation is not an emergency and, therefore, refrain from acting as well. Evidence also indicates that fear is reduced in numbers even when the danger is not. Therefore,

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