The Tragic Story of Kitty Genovese and the Bystander Effect: Examining Our Responsibility to Act in Emergencies

Kitty Genovese

Murdered outside apartment- prompted to investigate bystander effect due to diffusion of responsibility.Attacked for 35 minutes and there was 38 bystanders.-1964,NY

Kitty Genovese was a young woman who was brutally attacked and murdered in Queens, New York, on March 13, 1964. The details of her murder gained national attention and sparked a conversation about what became known as the “bystander effect”.

According to reports, Kitty Genovese was attacked and stabbed repeatedly on the street outside her apartment building as she returned home late at night. Despite her screams for help, none of her neighbors intervened or contacted the police until it was too late. Her attacker fled the scene, leaving her to die alone.

The incident shocked the nation and raised questions about the responsibility of individuals to help those in danger, especially when surrounded by a large group of people. The bystander effect refers to the phenomenon where individuals are less likely to intervene in an emergency situation when others are present, assuming that someone else will take action.

The case of Kitty Genovese ultimately led to the creation of emergency hotline services, including 911, to enable people to easily report incidents to the appropriate authorities. It also spurred psychological research into the bystander effect, which has since become an important area of study in social psychology.

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