Piliavin (1969) - Key findings

Question 1

Cane vs drunk condition - what percentage of the time was spontaneous help given?

Answer 1

cane - 95%

drunk - 50%

Question 2

Cane vs drunk condition - median delay before help given?

Answer 2

cane - 5 seconds

drunk - 109 seconds

Question 3

Race of victim - how did this affect whether help was given?

Answer 3

slight tendency for bystanders to help victim of same race as them, particularly in drunk condition

Question 4

Effect of modelling - how did the model helping after 70 seconds compared to after 150 seconds affect helping behaviour of bystanders?

Answer 4

70 seconds - victim helped 9 times

150 seconds - victim helped 3 times

Question 5

Why was model not needed in most cases?

Answer 5

Bystanders helped before model

Question 6

Number of bystanders - did diffusion of responsibility occur?

Answer 6

no

In some instances help was even offered faster in larger groups

Question 7

Number of helpers - in what percentage of trials was help given by two or more bystanders?

Answer 7

60%

Question 8

Male vs female help - what percentage of the first bystanders to help were male?

Answer 8

90%

Question 9

Verbal comments - were they more frequent in the drunk or disabled condition?

Answer 9

drunk condition

Question 10

Was helping behaviour found to be higher in laboratory experiments or in Piliavin’s study (a field experiment)?

Answer 10

Higher in Piliavin’s study