Darley and Latané XXXXXXXXXXasked subjects to participate in a discussion carried on over an intercom. Aside from the experimenter to whom they were speaking, subjects thought that there were zero,...

Darley and Latané (1968) asked subjects to participate in a discussion carried on over an intercom. Aside from the experimenter to whom they were speaking, subjects thought that there were zero, one, or four other people (bystanders) also listening over intercoms. Partway through the discussion, the experimenter feigned serious illness and asked for help. Darley and Latané noted how often the subject sought help for the experimenter as a function of the number of supposed bystanders. The data follow: