On the morning of Friday, Sept. 23, close to 150 students were part of Dr. Robin Perrin’s social experiment.
The bystander effect theory of social psychology suggests that the more people in a group, the less likely it is that any individual in the group will feel compelled to take action should the group witness an accident, crime, or other emergency.
Halfway through his lecture, Perrin said: “I feel a little dizzy … is it hot in here to you?” Moments later he was on the floor, having presumably passed out. Students were stunned, and to a certain extent, the bystander effect theory held true. Students stood up to see what happened, but it took a moment for anyone to take action.
But eventually, some did take action. Senior Biology major Noel Moul was the first to make it to the front of the room, trying to help her professor. “I really thought he was kidding at first, but I didn’t want to risk it,” Moul said.
Moul wasn’t the only student to take action. Freshman Skie Osborn already left the room to get help by the time Perrin appeared to have regained consciousness. As Perrin was explaining his harmless experiment, Osborn came back to class with a Public Safety officer.
A few minutes later, police came to the door and asked Perrin to speak with them outside of the room. Reentering, Perrin explained that a 911 call had gone out somewhere in the crowd while he was still on the floor. Police had taken Perrin’s driver’s license to file a police report and had cautioned him to notify campus security before performing this experiment again.
Osborn felt guilty for bringing police into the situation.
“My professor passed out,” Osborn said. “I was very worried.” Osborn explained her difficulty in contacting emergency personnel, concerned that someone in Perrin’s position might not have gotten help soon enough in a real emergency. “It wasn’t very easy to get someone. I had to run into the cafeteria and ask the cashier to call Public Safety. It would have been better if I had the number for DPS in my phone. I’m definitely putting it in my phone after this.”
Once the dust had cleared, everyone understood that there had been no real danger. Resuming class, Perrin revealed that the ultimate goal of his experiment was to help his students remember the principles of this theory, how it can be tested and in which settings it holds true. “A professor is always looking for ways to help students remember the material,” he said.
“I maybe should have popped up quicker,” Perrin said after class, feeling badly about having upset some students and pulling the police into the issue. “But I do think people will remember.”
