In a post in June, 2008 ABC News Medical Unit writers Lauren Cox and Radha Chiatle told a news story about an accident in which a 78-year-old hit-and-run victim was left unconscious lying in the street and no one seemed to help him. There were bystanders and motorists passing by him, but none bothered to help the old man. This entire scenery, which was captured by a surveillance camera, has triggered a public debate over the issue. This story reminds us of the Genovese case, a famous case occurred in the early 1960, where Kitty Genovese was attacked and eventually murdered over a 45 minute period during which 38 people witnessed the attack and did not lift a finger to help in any way. Like Genovese, the old man was not helped by any of the bystanders simply because there were many of them and none of them did not know what to do, or expected others to help in their stead.
Here are some excerpts from the story.
Hartford, Conn., Mayor Eddie A. Perez announced his disgust Thursday after watching the footage, showing several cars swerving to avoid Angle Arce Torres, who was lying paralyzed and bleeding from the head.
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Tragically, some experts say the public's inaction is a classic social occurrence. "It's kind of a textbook case of bystander phenomenon," says John Darley, a professor of psychology and public affairs at Princeton University.
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Bystander phenomenon, sometimes referred to as bystander apathy or the Genovese effect, is a psychological phenomenon in which people are less likely to respond to an emergency when there are others around.
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