Social area Flashcards
What are the two studies in the social area
Piliavin (1969)
Levine et al (2001)
What is the Key theme of the two studies in the social area
Responses to people in need
What is the key theme in the Piliavin study
Helping behaviour
What is the arousal cost-benefit model
We are more likely to carry out an action that gives us the most benefits and the least costs
What is:
Bystander apathy
Bystander intervention
Bystander apathy = When someone witnesses an event where someone requires help but they choose not to help them
Bystander intervention = When someone witnesses an event where someone requires help and they choose to help them
What is pluralistic ignorance
We are less likely to interpret a situation as dangerous (and therefore requiring help) if others are present and ignoring the problem -Latane and Darely
What is diffusion of responsibility
The greater number of people there are in a situation, the fewer people will help -Latane and Darely
What were the aims of the Piliavin study
- To carry out a field study instead of a laboratory study into bystanders behaviour
- To investigate whether helping behaviour can be explained by the arousal cost-benefit model
What type of experiment was the Piliavin study:
Lab / Field
Participant / non participant observation
Qualitative / Quantitative
Ordinal / Nominal
Repeated / Independent / Matched pairs
Lab / Field —> Field experiment
Participant / non participant observation –> Participant
Qualitative / Quantitative —> Quantitative
Ordinal / Nominal —> Nominal
Repeated / Independent / Matched pairs –> Independent
What was the independent variable in the Piliavin study
- The condition of the victim: Drunk or Ill
- The race of the victim: Black or White
What was the Dependent variable in the Piliavin study
- How many people helped and speed they helped
- Race and gender of helpers
- If anyone moved out of the critical area
- Comments made by passengers during the incident
What controls were made in the Piliavin study
- Models behaviour was timed (70 vs. 150 seconds)
- Same journey, so no stopping at stations
- Victims all wore identical clothing in a bomber jacket
What was the sample in the Piliavin study
Approximately: 4450 participants (train passengers)
Mean number of people in a carriage = 43
Racial mix = 55% white and 45% black
What sampling method was used in the Piliavin study
Opportunity sampling
What was the target population in the Piliavin study
Everyone / New York
Briefly describe the procedure for Piliavin’s study
- On a subway train in New York
- Non-stop ride for 7.5 minutes
- April-June 1968 11am-3pm
- The team entered the train through different doors and the ‘victim’ ‘collapsed’ after 70 seconds
- The 2 observers (both female) would stand in the adjacent area and record the help that people offered
- The model would step-in (male) if nobody else did
- The model would step-in early or late (or often not at all)
(the teams were supposed to alternate the victim between drunk and ill but the victim did not like performing the ‘drunk’ condition, so the ill condition was carried out more often)
- Critical area early (70 seconds)
- Critical area late (150 seconds
- Adjacent area early (70 seconds)
- Adjacent area late (150 seconds)
What were the findings in the Piliavin study for the condition of the victim
- Ill received 62 out of 65 helps (95%)
- Drunk received 19 out of 38 helps (50%)
- Median time taken to help ill victim = 5 seconds
- Median time taken to help drunk victim = 109 seconds
- More comments made about drunk victim then the ill victim