Berithil said:
Well, sadly I'm not surprised. There were stories of a girl getting gangraped and people just stood and watched. I beloved there is a law that states that the more people who are around when something bad happens, the less likely someone will help. Can't remember what the name was
Captain trivia!
It's called the Bystander Effect [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bystander_effect], and it's basically what you said. If something's happening and there are other people around to witness it, you're less inclined to take action because you think that another person will take care of it, and, being social creatures by habit, if nobody helps, we figure it's not a situation that requires helping.
I myself remember once a woman fell down the stairs, dropping a stack of papers as she did, in front of me (and of course other people). She was either mid-thirties or early forties, certainly not all that physically capable, and looked to be distressed.
I was literally thinking about the Bystander Effect as this happened. I was completely aware what was going on, I knew that I should act, but I didn't. Luckily, my friend Mat did, and the day went on.
Another time, and I wasn't there to witness this, but my friends Mat and Steven were hanging out and, as a joke, Mat pretended to fall in a parking lot (certainly, other people were there) and began to wail melodramatically, even disguising his laughter as moans of pain, crying and whatnot. Other people noticed, but to my knowledge, not one of them offered a helping hand. It's funny for me to think about (knowing Mat and just imagining what kinds of noises and facial expressions he'd make), but I wonder, what if he actually had been hurt, and nobody did anything?
Back on this specific topic, it's of course terrible. We all feel indignant that nobody lifted a finger, but that's just how it is. I like to think that, armed with this knowledge, in a
real emergency, I'll be more willing to act. But who knows? It might turn out just like that woman who fell down the stairs.