The news had piqued my interest. The world had accused China as an apathetic nation. The event had even sparked “stop apathy” campaign online. To most of us, it seems bizarre that none of the people present responded. Some speculated that the lack of response was related to the fear of bearing the responsibility. When interviewed, the monger said the reason they didn’t help the girl was because they assumed they would be held responsible and blamed for the girl’s misfortune. Some claimed that city people indifference in nature. But it seemed that this is not an exceptional event. For example, nobody could forget about the tragedy that befallen Kitty Genovese, who was brutally murdered witnessed by a lot of bystanders or the Singaporean student who was abandoned after gang-raped and murdered in Delhi on 2013. Who to blame for these unfortunate events? Is it true that these bystanders have a lack of empathy and heartless? Did they not pity the victims? Or are they just jerks who enjoy seeing people’s suffering? Probably they are just people like you and me.
Side-line spectators
The term of “bystander effect” was coined to explain the lack of action in an emergency situation when more people are nearby. Psychologists had tried to explain the absurd phenomena for years. Finally, in an eventful lunch, American psychologists Darley and Latane discussed to show and explain why such an event occurred. They designed an experiment where participants were asked to sit down in individual cubicles and could communicate with other subjects over an intercom system. There was actually only one real participant in the study; the other participants were pre-recorded voices, including one person that had a seizure. The researchers manipulated the...
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...tle girl had sacrificed herself as if trying to open our eyes on how important of helping people in need. Don’t expect for incentives. When faced in situation like Wang Yue’s don’t wait and expect people to come forward.A simple and small gesture can help another person’s life. Public must be educated on the importance of lending a hand and parents must instilled and internalized good moral values on children. Misfortunes like Wang Yue’s story can be easily prevented if all the members of society are willing to work together and help each other. So are we all jerks? Maybe we were, but you and you alone can change that. Don’t just give up on your morality. Be a Good Samaritan.
“The purpose of life is not to be happy. It is to be useful, to be honorable, to be compassionate, to have it make some difference that you have lived and lived well.” ― Ralph Waldo Emerson-
... There is no joy, no choice, and no individuality. If those qualities are not present in life, then what is the purpose of living? In the council’s opinion the purpose of life and living is to provide for all of man (meaning to just work day in and day out) and not for oneself. If my life had no purpose, no individuality, and no happiness, I would not want to live.
In conclusion, humankind is blessed with life as God created it. One must reflect on their actions throughout life because one will be judged by God in the next life, one must see the importance of gasping liberation, and one must have a loving and open heart when helping the poor. Life should be lived to its fullest because once time is lost, it cannot be regained; life needs to be appreciated.
...though the researchers weren’t looking for it, he results represent ideas that can help the bystander effect in a situation. Smaller numbers increase the percentage of realization when it comes down to an emergency. The victim, if cohesive, actually plays a big role in causing the bystander effect as well. When a victim is unable to verbally communicate with bystanders, it lessens the chance of help. If a victim is capable of communicating, the help given could be more efficient. This is because it can help break the diffusion of responsibility. A victim looking a bystander directly in the eyes can even spark a quicker reaction in them. These are all ideas that psychologists still study today, and many even consider learning about this phenomenon a requirement.
To see the world, things dangerous to come to, to see behind walls, draw closer, to find each other, and to feel. That is the purpose of life”.- Walter Mitty (Movie).
Most of us would like to think of ourselves as decent, helpful people. We proclaim that we would never turn our backs on someone in obvious need of help-or would we? In fact, any of us, when faced with a person who seems to be in trouble, do nothing. To explain this, the term bystander effect was coined by sociologist and psychologists. It is a psycho-social phenomenon that suggest the more people there are present at a scene of emergency, the less likely they are to help.
Everyone once in their life has witnessed a person get into trouble or maybe danger, we like to think we would help the person in need but that ain’t always the case. The social psychological phenomenon that occurs when individuals don’t offer help or intervene in an emergency situation because of the presence of others is called the bystander effect, or bystander apathy. The chances of helping are greatly related to the number of bystanders. In other words, the greater the number of bystanders, the less likely it is that any one of them will help. Perceived diffusion of responsibility (onlookers are more likely to intervene if there are few or no other witnesses) and social influence (individuals in a group monitor the behavior of those around
In most countries, allowing an injustice to take place is seen as something unethical, and for that reason, it is evident that being a bystander is morally incorrect. This is demonstrated in the article, “We Are Living Through a
Fischer, P., Krueger, J., Greitemeyer, T., Kastenmüller, A., Vogrincic, C., Frey, D., Heene, M., Wicher, M., & Kainbacher, M. (2011). The bystander-effect: A meta-analytic review on bystander intervention in dangerous and non-dangerous emergencies. Psychological Bulletin, 137, 517-537.
“ The secret of happiness, you see, is not found in seeking more, but in developing the capacity to enjoy less, said Greek Philosopher Socrates. Philosophers have said that happiness is about living a good life. Looking at the reading we see different views of what people thought happiness was. We will explore the different characters and stories of a few people like Epicurus, Epictetus, and Socrates. Whether it be through doing what we want to do or doing what we ought to do through happiness or pleasure.
Darley, J. M. & Latané, B. (1968) Bystander intervention in emergencies: Diffusion of responsibility, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 8, 377–383
All human beings have a common desire. The desire that all humans are striving for is something that is important and vital to every human being. This desire is happiness, which according to Aristotle, “is not something you can feel or experience at a particular moment. It is the quality of a whole life.” Many great philosophers, like Aristotle, have attempted to seek and comprehend what happiness is. Plato believe happiness is a “harmony within the soul-the spiritual well-being of the truly virtuous man.” Immanuel Kant defines “the pursuit of happiness as selfish, setting personal satisfaction above the objective norm of duty and right.” Aristotle believes “Everyone uses the word happiness to name that which he seeks for its own sake and not for the sake of anything else. One wants to be happy because happiness is the ultimate good.” Happiness is a desire all humans want, no one wants to live a dreadful life. Everyone wants to live a good life. Happiness is the total satisfaction of all human desire. In Mortimer Adler’s point of view, there are many components that can lead to happiness. Three important components to attain happiness are bodily, social, and intellectual goods.
The bystander effect is an occurrence which can happen at any time and in any place. The definition is "… [a] social psychological phenomenon ... in which individuals do not offer any means of help … when other people are present." Although people can be helpful, the bystander effect is caused by social pressures such as: diffusion of responsibility, informational social influence, and evaluation apprehension which can make a lot of people unhelpful.
Quote: Joy, rather than happiness, is the goal of life, for joy is the emotion which accompanies our fulfilling our natures as human beings. It is based on the experience of one's identity as a being of worth and dignity-Rollo May
Aristotle, the Greek philosopher, said in his book “Nichomachean Ethics” that "happiness is the meaning and purpose of life, the aim and end of human existence." (Aristotle). He means that happiness is a central purpose of human life. It is true when we all wish to be happy. However, when we are asked what happiness is, we cannot define happiness in a general concept because it means something different to each individual person. For example, for one person, happiness is a sense of satisfaction from success in career, whereas for others, it may be a feeling of being loved by other people. Meanwhile, philosophers indicate that happiness has two senses. The first one is psychological sense related to a state of mind (Haybron). The other sense
But the means for what purpose is a good life? There is no answer to this question, Aristotle said, because "a good life is an end in itself; we are not aiming for it for the sake of anything else"