People who are present when something happens but are not directly involved in it.
From Middle English 'bystander,' combining 'by' (near) and 'stander' (one who stands). The word gained prominence in the 1700s and became especially important in legal contexts.
The 'bystander effect' shows that the more people witness an emergency, the less likely anyone helps—your brain assumes someone else will. Tragedy researcher Kitty Genovese's case made this psychological phenomenon horrifyingly real.
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