Jaywalking

850 Words2 Pages

In the previous paper, I discussed the phenomenon of jaywalking, particularly the “jaywalking culture” around UW Seattle campus. My observation is that, in a group setting, pedestrians are more likely to illegally cross the intersection if others jaywalk. Next, the questions to ask are: Why do people jaywalk? What are some other implications of this disobedient behavior? In “Jaywalking as a Function of Model Behavior” (1990), Brian Mullen, Carolyn Copper and James E. Driskell offered some explanations as means of understanding jaywalking and its effects in a social setting. They conducted meta-analysis on seven studies of jaywalk that included four experiment models: high-status obedient model, high-status disobedient model, low-status obedient model, and low-status disobedient model. By comparing various data, the conclusion came to be while both obedient models and disobedient models impact the frequency of jaywalking, disobedient models obtain greater social influence on fellow pedestrians than obedient models (Mullen et al. 1990). Besides the “antinormative” action itself, two other variables also help construct the phenomenon: the status of the walker and the size of cities (Mullen et al. 1990).
Disobedient models have greater influence on others, mainly for two reasons: First, individuals who perform disobedient behaviors attract more attention than those who perform obedient behaviors. (Mullen et al. 1990) Other pedestrians are inclined to pay more attention to inappropriate behaviors like jaywalking. When pedestrians cross the intersection legally, not much attention is directed onto them because they are displaying an act seen as normal, in the sense that everyone is following the rules as they are supposed to. However, ...

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...lking based on meta-analysis of different studies. While both obedient and disobedient models exert significant effect on the frequency of jaywalking, disobedient models produce greater impact than obedient models (Mullen et al. 1990). Furthermore, the difference status of models, size of city and pace of life contribute to the magnitude of jaywalking. As a disobedient behavior, jaywalking around UW campus as a social phenomenon is shaped by multiple factors.

Works Cited

Mullen, Brian, Carolyn Copper and James E. Driskell. “Jaywalking as a Function of Model Behavior.” Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 16.2 (1990): 320 – 330

Becker, S. Howard, “Whose Side Are We On?” The Intersection Collection Pearson Custom Sociology

Diener, E. “Deindividuation: The Absence of Self-Awareness and Self-regulation in Group Members.” Psychology of Group Influence (1980)

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