
Seeking Balance One Tuesday at a Time
Bystander Myth Debunked – People Help Each Other
New research confirms my belief that the larger the crowd, the more potential helpers there are. “The study finds that in nine out of 10 incidents, at least one bystander intervened, with an average of 3.8 interveners.” The abstract from American Psychologist stated that “typically several” people will help. The old “bystander effect” myth was apparently started by research done in a laboratory and possibly reports of unfortunate but exceptional incidents. The new study used data from surveillance videos of arguments or assaults in the three large and diverse cities of Amsterdam, Cape Town, and Lancaster, England and found no significant differences in helping between these cities.
It suggests that people are willing to self-police to protect their communities and others. Thatโs in line with the research of urban criminologist Patrick Sharkey, who finds that stronger neighborhood organizations, not a higher quantity of policing, have fueled the Great Crime Decline.
You can read more about the study published in American Psychologist in this article from Citylab
…
Honoring A Man of Peace and Harmony
“An 83-year-old Muslim cleric who hid 262 Christians (and Muslims) in his home and mosque during an attack in central Nigeria” was honored Wednesday in Washington. The Imam, Abubakar Abdullahi, < (click his name for a moving interview) along with four religious leaders from Sudan, Iraq, Brazil and Cyprus, were awarded the 2019 the International Religious Freedom Award. Here’s the story from CNN.
“God had a reason for creating us as diverse humans. No one has a reason to question the existence of the other. If God had wanted otherwise, he would have created us the same. We must embrace the diversity that God has created and strive to live in peace with each other everywhere in the world…. God wants us to live together in peace…. We should all respect one another. Follow the rules and be selfless advocates for peace.”
Imam, Abubakar Abdullahi
…
On the Trail
Melanie was born with spina bifida and uses a wheelchair to get around. Trevor became blind recently due to glaucoma. They both live in Colorado and met in an adaptive adaptive boxing class. What a wonderful adventure it must have been to realize they could hike together as a team! She’s the eyes; he’s the legs. Check it out!
…
Got good news? Please share in the comments!
It can be global, local, or personal.
Feel free to write a good news post of your own and link it back here.
July 23, 2019 at 10:45 am
how nice!
Tuesdays seem
much gooder ๐
July 23, 2019 at 9:58 pm
lol. Gooder and gooder! ๐
July 23, 2019 at 11:31 am
I’m glad to see the updated research on bystanders.
July 23, 2019 at 9:59 pm
Me, too! Thanks for being glad with me!
July 23, 2019 at 11:54 am
I always look forward to Good News Tuesdays. This week did not disappoint.
July 23, 2019 at 10:00 pm
Yay! It’s comments like your that keep me going. Thank you for the support!
July 23, 2019 at 12:41 pm
All great stories, JoAnna! As Imam Abubakar Abdullahi said, “We must embrace the diversity that God has created and strive to live in peace with each other everywhere in the world.”
July 23, 2019 at 11:41 pm
Amen. If we could all live by those words, what a wonderful world it would be.
July 23, 2019 at 11:25 pm
Hello Joanna, just as I promised, I wrote about Anne Lamott. Here it is: https://kloydecaday.wordpress.com/2019/07/24/books-on-faith-terrify-me-until-anne-lamott/. I hope you like it!
July 24, 2019 at 3:23 pm
I do like it very much! Very thoughtful and summarizes many of the reasons I love her writing. Thank you!
July 24, 2019 at 6:08 pm
Thanks Joanna!
July 24, 2019 at 6:02 am
That hiking duo is amazing. The final observation about finding another person with the same crazy idea is inspirational
July 24, 2019 at 3:27 pm
It’s like finding two key pieces in a puzzle that fit just right.
July 25, 2019 at 3:15 am
Yes
July 24, 2019 at 6:59 am
I teared up happy tears at the hiking pair up there. They also captured my heart as I’m a Colorado native and have been all over the trails and mountains out there.
I also was so touched by the story of Imam Abubakar – wow! Sometimes I feel like I might have to do that with our immigrants here. I’m such an introvert and it wouldn’t be easy for me, but if it came down to it, I want to see people thrive, not suffer. Ah well…
Your first piece of news up there with the bystander effect…I’d like to think I’d be one of those people that would help. I remember being in line to board a plane at Chicago O’Hare once and there was this announcement for a Far Eastern gentleman (judging by his name) to board the plane. Moments later I saw this man of Asian descent looking around with a confused look on his face. I put two and two together and stepped out of line and guided the man to the gate. He was so cute! He said, “Sank you. Sank you veddy much.” I remember his smile and gratefulness in that one encounter so long ago. Folks were kind enough to also let me have my place back in line.
Ah, thank you for these beautiful stories! I must share them. ๐
July 24, 2019 at 3:29 pm
Thank you for reading and appreciating the good news, Cynthia. And also for sharing your own story from the airport. I’m so glad you caught this and took action and that folks let you back into your space in the line. โค
July 25, 2019 at 6:33 am
Hi, JoAnna. It’s been a long while since I have connected but I’m glad I did. That story about the Muslim Cleric was just wonderful.
July 25, 2019 at 7:37 pm
I’m so glad you appreciated that story. It’s nice to see you, again, Paol.
October 18, 2019 at 7:12 pm
Thanks! You might find value in my attempt to catalog “best practices” in teamwork and collaboration in the form of a Pattern Language. Here’s a link to the intro. (BTW, this is all free; no ads; not trying to get a consulting gig). https://petersironwood.com/2018/01/07/special-spaces-wonderful-places/
October 18, 2019 at 9:23 pm
Best wishes. I’ll take a look. Thanks.