Piliavin Study

Question 1

What is the ‘diffusion of responsibility” hypothesis

Answer 1

The more people present the less likely they are to help

Question 2

Who did a laboratory experiment to test the diffusion of responsibility hypothesis

Answer 2

Darley and Latane

Question 3

What was the experiment ?

Answer 3

• Students were put into individual cubicles and told there were different numbers of other students in other cubicles whom they would debate via a microphone and headphones
• suddenly a fake member of the group was heard to groan and shout for help as if having a seizure

Question 4

What were the results ?

Answer 4

When ppts believed

• they were the only ones present: 85% helped within 60 seconds
• three people were present 62% helps within 60seconds
• four or more were present: 31% helped within 60 seconds

Question 5

Weaknesses of current theories

Answer 5

• Lacks ecological validity

- Piliavin wanted to test theories in a real environment so her findings are more valid

Question 6

What are the key terms ?

Answer 6

• Bystander behaviour
• diffusion of responsibility
• two factor model of helping behaviour

Question 7

What are the Independent variables

Answer 7

• Race if the victim(black or white)
• Type of victim(drunk or ill)
• Use of model(early 70 seconds or - late 150 seconds)
• No of people in the carriage

Question 8

What are the dependent variables

Answer 8

• Race and gender of helper
• Which victim (drunk or ill) was helped most
• speed of helping
• how many people helped
• whether participants tried to move away
• what was being said
• if people helped after the model helped

Question 9

What was the method of data collection

Answer 9

• Piliavin used observation methods to collect the data
• 4 teams of 4 student experimenters
  ( two male/ two female)
• male actors
• females were observers

Question 10

When and where?

Answer 10

• 103 experimental trials took place
• between 11 am and 3pm over a period of 2 months in 1968
• no stops journey time 7 1/2 mins

Question 11

How many participants were estimated to be on the trains ?

Answer 11

• estimated as 4450 travellers(men and women)

- 45% black and 55% white

Question 12

What was the average number in a carriage ?

Answer 12

43

Question 13

What was the average number in the ‘critical area’

Answer 13

8.5

Question 14

What happened in procedure 1

Answer 14

• 70 seconds after train left station the :
• victim waited for help
• victim pretended to collapse
• if no one ‘helped’ the ‘model’ helped the victim off at the next stop

Question 15

What happened in procedure 2?

Answer 15

• at the end of each trial, all the experimenters got off the train, went to another platform and boarded a train travelling in the opposite direction
• 6-8trials were run everyday

Victims were all dressed identically in bomber jacket

Question 16

What were results number 1?

Answer 16

• Ill(cane) victim received spontaneous help in 62 of 65 trials(95%)
• drunk victim received spontaneous help in 19 of 38 trials
• 90% of those who helped were men
• race of victim and helper did not have an effect except in drunk condition( slight tendency towards sane race helping)
• model was hardly used as helping was so high(on 81 trials). But once ONE person helped others did so too

Question 17

What were results number 2 ?

Answer 17

• Average helping time ill = 5 seconds, drunk= 109 seconds
• most people who did not help(women made comments about their size or physical strength as a reason for not helping )
• There was NO diffusion of responsibility- increased number of people in the carriage did not reduce amount of help being received
• people couldn’t ‘get away’

Question 18

What were results number 3?

Answer 18

• the longer the emergency went on without anyone assisting:
• the less impact the model had in behaviour
• the more likely it was individuals would leave the critical area
• the more likely individuals were to discuss the incident and attempt to ‘justify’ their own behaviour
• there were more comments on drunk trials

Question 19

What’s the conclusion

Answer 19

IV 1 Race
IV 2 state of victim
IV 3 Use of model
IV 4 number of people present