[/caption]Carol Forsloff - 48 years ago a woman named Kitty Genovese was chased and killed as more than 30 people watched the initial struggles of the young woman and listened to her cries for help and failed to report the incident to police, a long time echo of what is now occurring at Pennsylvania State University.
At the time of the Genovese incident, people around the country said they were surprised that people failed to come to the aid of the woman, who was in full view of the windows surrounding the incident when she was killed; people watched a shadowy figure struggle with Genovese who was later found dead. The most serious criticism at the time was the fact that so many people failed to even call the police.
In the face of the greatest scandal ever to face Pennsylvania State University, people are said to have ignored the repeated accusations against administrative coach Jerry Sandusky allegedly performing inappropriate acts on young boys. From the President of the University to members of the sport administration, like the famous Penn State Coach, Joe Paterno, people are being accused of having evidence or accusations and failing to notify proper authorities or covering up evidence. Sports experts maintain the abuse scandal is part of the ongoing problems that have gripped the area of sports that have included use of steroids and other issues related to poor sportsmanship. But the problem goes further.
That problem is the failure to warn, that admonition given to many professionals in service sectors. In this case it is said that abused children took a second seat to the reputation of the University and the famous football team. There have been a series of research articles done on the topic of the bystander effect defined as “ the phenomenon in which the greater the number of people present, the less likely people are to help a person in distress. When an emergency situation occurs, observers are more likely to take action if there are few or no other witnesses.” In other words, a single person is more likely to render aid than a group of individuals.
Researchers Latané and Darley organized college students in cubicles where they listened to what they thought were cries for help from real people. When a student believed he or she was the only one available to help, 85% responded and provided assistance. When they believed there were others available to help, only 65% responded to help. This percentage dropped to 31% when the students believed there were at least four other persons available to help. Researchers found that the more people the students found might be available to offer aid, the fewer actually responded.
According to an article specific to the topic of the bystander effect, bystanders go through a five-step before they decide to do nothing:
- Notice the event (or in a hurry and not notice).
- Realize the emergency (or assume that as others are not acting, it is not an emergency).
- Assume responsibility (or assume that others will do this).
- Know what to do (or not)
- Act (or worry about danger, legislation, embarrassment, etc.)
Penn state students and officials now express their sympathy with the victims in the recent scandal even as many people expressed shock that no one responded to Kitty Genovese’ cries for help. The lesson from those bystanders was the one likely failed by those in the administration of sports who knew better and failed to act.
