The Bystander Effect
Thomas Gilovich, Victoria Husted Medvec, and Kenneth Savitsky believe that this phenomenon is partially the reason for the bystander effect. They found that concern or alarm were not as apparent to observers as the individual experiencing them thought, and that people believed they would be able to read others' expressions better than they actually could.
When confronted with a potential emergency, people typically play it cool, adopt a look of nonchalance, and monitor the reactions of others to determine if a crisis is really at hand. No one wants to overreact, after all, if it might not be a true emergency. However, because each individual holds back, looks nonchalant, and monitors the reactions of others, sometimes everyone concludes (perhaps erroneously) that the situation is not an emergency and hence does not require intervention. —Thomas Gilovich, Kenneth Savitsky, and Victoria Husted Medvec, Journal of Personal and Social Psychology, Vol. 75, No. 2Read more about this topic: Illusion Of Transparency
Famous quotes containing the word effect:
“The first general store opened on the ‘Cold Saturday’ of the winter of 1833 ... Mrs. Mary Miller, daughter of the store’s promoter, recorded in a letter: ‘Chickens and birds fell dead from their roosts, cows ran bellowing through the streets’; but she failed to state what effect the freeze had on the gala occasion of the store opening.”
—Administration in the State of Sout, U.S. public relief program (1935-1943)