Sexual assaults
Sexual assault, pushed into public conversation by the #MeToo movement, once again dominates the U.S. news cycle. Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh faces allegations that he sexually assaulted professor Christine Blasey Ford, a former high school classmate. The allegations have led to a number of important questions regarding victim testimony, the veracity of memory and the justice system in America. However, as social scientists who study sexuality and violence, we found ourselves asking a different question: Where were Kavanaugh and Ford’s classmates during this alleged incident? The role of bystanders Based on Dr.
How Could People Watch Alleged Gang Rape 'Like An Exhibit'?
Oct. 30, 2009 — -- Members of the Richmond, Calif., community were stunned by the alleged rape and assault of a high school student after a school dance last Saturday. But a nationwide news audience was even more astonished by allegations that about 20 people in the immediate area observed about 10 men and boys gang rape and beat the 15-year-old girl for two-and-a-half hours on the Richmond High School campus and did not contact authorities. Psychology experts say the incident, if it occurred as described, may have been the result of escalating wildness facilitated by an isolated, heavily male environment. "If one of the boys or men grabbed her and pulled her toward him ... and somebody else did something else so it became more and more sexual in nature ... we now have a [group of boys] who are pretty wild," said John Darley, a professor of psychology and public affairs at Princeton University. "Each act licensed what had gone before, and it also made more likely what came next."
[Definition] Pluralistic Ignorance
Pluralistic Ignorance Definition Pluralistic ignorance occurs when people erroneously infer that they feel differently from their peers, even though they are behaving similarly. As one example, imagine the following scenario: You are sitting in a large lecture hall listening to an especially complicated lecture. After many minutes of incomprehensible material, the lecturer pauses and asks if there are any questions. No hands go up. You look around the room.
The Death of Raymond Zack: No Heroes, Only Bystanders
50-year-old Raymond Zack waded into the surf on an Alameda, California beach and stood calmly in the 54-degree water, apparently waiting to die. His suicide took nearly an hour, but eventually he drowned, with no rescue attempts from any of the 75 San Franciscans who gathered on the shore to watch the entire tragedy. Why didn’t anyone try to rescue the man? Apparently it was because nobody was paid to do it. You see, stopping Zack from killing himself wasn’t anyone’s job.
Participating in Bystander Intervention Programmes
The likelihood of a victim's survival will increase more than threefold with intervention. PHOTO: ST FILE SINGAPORE - A study has found that three measures, when applied together, have more than doubled the likelihood of bystanders performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) on cardiac arrest victims in Singapore. Dispatch-assisted CPR, CPR and automated external defibrillator training, and the Singapore Civil Defence Force's myResponder app were found to have increased the responses of bystanders giving life-saving assistance to heart attack victims before paramedics attended to them. Dispatch-assisted CPR refers to CPR that is administered under the guidance of a first responder, such as a paramedic who may, through a phone call, assess the situation and give instructions to a bystander, who then performs CPR.
A New York student was fatally stabbed while onlookers took a video of his suffering
Tyler Flach is charged with second-degree murder in the death of 16-year-old Khaseen Morris, killed after a fight at a strip mall near Oceanside High School on Monday in Nassau County, New York. Flach was remanded into custody and is due back in court Monday, according to Brendan Brosh, a spokesman for the Nassau County District Attorney. Defense attorney Edward Sapone said Flach maintains his innocence.
Family Violence
It’s a community issue, and we can all choose to stay silent – or act to end abuse. We round up a recent NVPC Giving Matters conversation on family violence. This article is written by our volunteer writer, Mona Thyagarajan, MSW. Dr Sudha Nair, founder of Pave, at an NVPC Giving Matters conversation on family violence
How Diffusion of Responsibility Affects Group Behavior
Diffusion of responsibility is a psychological phenomenon in which people are less likely to take action when in the presence of a large group of people.1 For example, imagine that you are in a large city on a bustling street. You notice a man fall to the ground and start convulsing as if having a seizure. Many people turn and look at the man, but no one moves to help or call for medical assistance.
