The Evils of Staying in the Crowd

In the early hours of 13th March, 1964, Kitty Genovese was murdered just a few steps away from her apartment door, out in the cold. Her neighbours heard shouts for help, some even saw what had happened, but no one came out. After stabbing her twice Kitty Genovese's attacker fled the scene, but realised he didn't need to when no one bothered to respond to his victim's cries; he later came back to stab her a few more times before raping her.

Social psychology calls it the "Bystander Effect" - when social responsibility is diffused in a crowd of onlookers/bystanders who witness to a particular incident they would otherwise have engaged in if they were alone. In a crowd of bystanders, everyone assumes the other person would help, thus no one does.

It is an intriguing social occurence, especially because it opposes the popular notion that crowds are 'good'. It challenges the age-old belief that the 'majority rules', and that the 'people are always right', while proving that people are, by nature, self-perserving and selfish. And while we are very acquainted with the positives of the 'crowd', being told that there is safety in numbers, and being taught that so much more could be achieved with the hands of many, I know the 'crowd' can rear its ugly head too. These are the dangers of only staying in the 'crowd':

1) The 'crowd' swallows the goodness of the individual and brings out the worst in humanity. Faceless, nameless and devoid of any personal responsibility, the 'crowd' is a social monster that survives on the strength in numbers - but take its members away, and you will notice how the 'crowd' falls silent and loses its strength. Hidden behind the faceless mask of the crowd are individuals who are lured into exchanging their personal opinions and individuality for the false strength of a crowd. Where there is no responsibility, there are no consequences. And even when the crowd is wrong, no one is guilty.

2) The 'crowd' is lethargic and always happy to remain where it is. Because it is adverse to change, it is also often trapped in the trenches of inaction and complacency. Clouded in a false sense of security, the 'crowd' is able to fend off its conscience, and need not do much because everyone is comfortable. Teamwork is difficult in a 'crowd', because a crowd tends to be directionless anyway.

3) The 'crowd' rarely rewards initiative and punishes different behaviour. In school, whenever a guy in our circle of friends did a humourous thing, or made us laugh, the deed was often celebrated, no matter how terrible it was (skipping school, cursing at the teacher, etc), but a person who was too 'right'/good would not be accorded the same reception. Unless we rise from the pressures of conforming to the crowd, we are slaves to the majority - and there's no guarantee it is always right.

Let's move beyond the 'crowd', and make things happen!