Subway Samaritans

Question 1

[Subway Samaritans] Psychology being investigated.

Answer 1

o Diffusion of responsibility.
o Bystander apathy.

Question 2

[Subway Samaritans] Aims?

Answer 2

Study bystander apathy in a natural setting by investigating the effect of
o type of victim
o race of victim
o Number of bystanders
o behaviour of model
on helping behaviour.

Question 3

[Subway Samaritans] Research Method:

Answer 3

Field experiment, Covert participant observation.

Question 4

[Subway Samaritans] Experimental design

Answer 4

Independent measures design

Question 5

[Subway Samaritans] IV?

Answer 5

o type of victim [ill/drunk]
o race of victim [black/white]
o model’s behaviour [late/ early, close/distant]
o number of bystanders [no.]

Question 6

[Subway Samaritans] DV?

Answer 6

Helping behaviour

Question 7

[Subway Samaritans] Sample size

Answer 7

4450
45% black
55% white

Question 8

[Subway Samaritans] When?

Answer 8

On weekdays, 11A.M-3P.M.

Question 9

[Subway Samaritans] victim

Answer 9

o 3 white male
o 1 white male
o dressed in casual, identical clothing [Jacket, Old trouser, no tie.]
o age: 26-35

Question 10

[Subway Samaritans] Total trials

Answer 10

103, 38 drunk trials and 65 sick trials.

Question 11

[Subway Samaritans] Route?

Answer 11

7.5 min long

Question 12

[Subway Samaritans] model

Answer 12

o all white male
o casual clothing
o 24-29

Question 13

[Subway Samaritans] trial condition

Answer 13

o critical and early: model stood in the critical area and helped after 70 sec
o critical/late: in critical area and helped after 150 sec
o adj/ early: in adj area, helped in 70 sec
o adj/ late: in adj area and helped in 150 sec
o no model condition: didn’t help until trial over, stop reached.

Question 14

[Subway Samaritans] Victim falls

Answer 14

o 70 secs in
o staggers forward and collapses
o lay on the floor looking upwards until helped.

Question 15

[Subway Samaritans] DV operationalized?

Answer 15

as the time taken to help and the number of people who helped.

Question 16

[Subway Samaritans] results?

Answer 16

o 78% received spontaneous help
o in 60% cases more than one person helped
o Key differences in the level of helping in different conditions of the study.
o 90% helpers male
o model acting early encouraged helping behaviour.
in 20% trial, movement out of critical area.

Question 17

cost-benefit model

Answer 17

Someone analyzing whether helping costs or benefits them more and then acting in accordance with the answer.

Question 18

diffusion of responsibility

Answer 18

Where there are other people witness to a predicament people may feel a lesser sense of helping due to reduced personal responsibility.

Question 19

[Subway Samaritans] verbal remarks

Answer 19

o “I wish I could help him - I am not strong enough.”
o “It’s for men to help him.”