Researchers survey 800 adults about hypothetical emergencies. Respondents say they would be most willing to risk their lives for an identical twin, then a sibling, then a cousin, and least for a stranger. Willingness to help a stranger increases sharply if the stranger had previously helped the respondent.
A follow-up Latané-Darley field study finds that helping rates drop as the number of bystanders increases. The best-supported mediator is:
- A
Mere exposure
- B
Cognitive dissonance
- C
Reciprocity norm
- Dcheck_circle
Diffusion of responsibility
Explanation
Latané and Darley showed the bystander effect operates largely through diffusion of responsibility—each person feels less personally accountable as group size grows.