Question 1 of 14Correct: 0
Why can a crowd's overall estimate be accurate?
What helps you gather opinions so averaging works?
Why can shame weaken in a crowd?
What most strongly shapes behavior in an anonymous crowd?
Why do people often fail to intervene in an ambiguous situation?
What helps if you need help among passersby?
Why do you start clapping along with the room?
What mainly determines how long applause lasts?
Why might people delay leaving in the first minutes?
What's most dangerous in a dense crowd crush?
Why might you give a wrong answer after the group does?
What helps others challenge a majority that is wrong?
Why does it become hard to breathe in a dense crowd crush?
What should you do if the crowd is already carrying you?
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How 787 people guessed a bull's weightin the app0/2Why Shame Disappears in a Crowd0/2Why no one helps on the streetin the app0/2Why applause is contagious0/2How Panic Takes Hold in a Crowd0/2How the majority effect works0/2When a crowd turns into a crushin the app0/2
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Answers and explanations14 questions
- Why can a crowd's overall estimate be accurate? Personal errors pull the estimate in different directionsWhen people make different, independent errors, their misses cancel each other out.From “How 787 people guessed a bull's weight”
- What helps you gather opinions so averaging works? Collect answers separately before discussing themSeparate answers preserve different perspectives, while discussion quickly pushes a group toward one opinion.From “How 787 people guessed a bull's weight”
- Why can shame weaken in a crowd? It is harder to connect the act to you personallyShame needs a witness who recognizes you, and that connection weakens in an anonymous crowd.From “Why Shame Disappears in a Crowd”
- What most strongly shapes behavior in an anonymous crowd? The norm the group displaysAnonymity does not remove rules - it makes the group's norm especially visible here and now.From “Why Shame Disappears in a Crowd”
- Why do people often fail to intervene in an ambiguous situation? Responsibility is shared, and others' reactions confuse themIn an unclear scene, responsibility feels shared, and other people's calm can easily seem like a sign that everything is fine.From “Why no one helps on the street”
- What helps if you need help among passersby? Pick a specific person and say what to doA specific request removes ambiguity and keeps responsibility from dissolving into the crowd.From “Why no one helps on the street”
- Why do you start clapping along with the room? You adjust to the overall noiseYou hear the room's overall volume, and that's what helps applause flare up almost at once.From “Why applause is contagious”
- What mainly determines how long applause lasts? Who stopped clapping firstStopping is contagious: when the first person lowers their hands, the overall noise drops and it's easier for others to stop.From “Why applause is contagious”
- Why might people delay leaving in the first minutes? They read their neighbors' calm as a sign of safetyPeople look at one another and take others' calm as a signal that the alarm is false.From “How Panic Takes Hold in a Crowd”
- What's most dangerous in a dense crowd crush? Pressure on the chestIn a dense crowd, your body is squeezed from all sides, and the main threat is uncontrolled pressure.From “How Panic Takes Hold in a Crowd”
- Why might you give a wrong answer after the group does? The majority seems like a source of data about realityYour brain may take a group's unanimity as a sign that your own eyes are wrong.From “How the majority effect works”
- What helps others challenge a majority that is wrong? Be the first to say the majority is wrongOne dissenter breaks unanimity, making it easier for others to name what they see.From “How the majority effect works”
- Why does it become hard to breathe in a dense crowd crush? The chest has no room to expandCompression is dangerous in a crush: your chest needs room to expand when you breathe in.From “When a crowd turns into a crush”
- What should you do if the crowd is already carrying you? Keep your arms in front and move in the pauseBent arms in front of your chest preserve room to breathe, and moving in the pause helps you avoid fighting the wave.From “When a crowd turns into a crush”