Bystander in Action - The Genevese Case

A woman in her late twnties, catherine genevese, was killed in a late night attack on her home street as she returned from work. Incredibly, 38 of her neighbors watched the events of her death unfold from the safety of their apartment windows without so much as lifting a finger to call the police. Catherine geneveses story would have died with her on that day in march 19 sity four, if it hadn't been for a mistake. A thorough understanding of the pluralistic ignorance phenomenon helps immeasurably to explain a regular occurrence in our country which has been termed both a riddle and a national disgrace.