A short overview of the bystander initiative, and guidance around how to be an active bystander.A bystander is someone who is indirectly involved in an incident or behaviour. An active bystander is someone who takes some action in relation to that incident of behaviour. These active bystanders are also sometimes referred to as ‘up-standers’.
The kinds of incidents and behaviours where bystanders should try, where possible, to be active or ‘up-standers’ are unacceptable behaviours where intervention may help prevent escalation of behaviour, and current and future harm. These kinds of behaviours and incidents can include anything along a continuum from ‘low level’ to ‘more serious’.
This continuum is vital to recognise as the perceived ‘low level’ behaviours will inevitably escalate without intervention, and become behaviours which are more explicitly recognised as unacceptable and harmful. Even without the escalation, these ‘low level’ behaviours create a culture whereby others may feel more able and entitled to engage in the ‘higher level’ behaviours. [See 'What Does Justice Mean to You?' for a contextual example of rape culture.] All unacceptable behaviours can be worth intervening in - as with the continuum of behaviours, there is a continuum of possible active responses.
There are four recognised stages of being an active bystander:
Notice
Interpret
Take Responsibility
Act
You must notice an unacceptable behaviour, interpret it as such, take responsibility to act, and then select an appropriate action. A vital component of the first stage is being open to be seeing these kinds of unacceptable behaviours in your communities. It’s easy not to notice unacceptable behaviour if you don’t think you’ll ever see it, and especially if you’re actively opposed to seeing it, in the communities you are a part of. It can be difficult to think unacceptable behaviours occur in settings, and with people, you choose to surround yourself with, but statistically and anecdotally they will occur much more frequently than is ever reported. This can be shocking for those, especially those not ready to admit there's a problem, but these people and their ignorance (conscious and subconscious) may be the exact reason victims and survivors find it difficult to report.
Interpreting unacceptable behaviours as such may be just as difficult. One way to help you determine the necessity to take responsibility is to not just take notice of the behaviour, but also the impact it's having on the person subjected to it. Using the impact of the behaviour over the intent, can be a much more reliable cue to follow. The next sections should now help you to take action...
The final stage, 'action', can be broken down in the following options:
Direct action
Delegated action
Delayed action, and
Action in the form of distraction
Taking direct action can involve speaking with the person engaging in the unacceptable behaviour, physically breaking up a fight, or removing unacceptable social media posts or comments. This can be risky if the action may lead to harm being directed to you, but it can be an extremely effective way of stopping the continuation of harm at the time.
Delegating the act of positive intervention usually involves asking the people whose job it is to intervene, to stop or de-escalate the unacceptable behaviour at the time it’s happening. Whilst this may escalate the situation by involving authority figures, and possibly cause a delay in action being taken, it may mean that the most appropriate action is taken in situations where people are in positions of responsibility to help and protect. Delegation can also be made to individuals who may not necessarily be employed to intervene but who may be more experienced in a particular area, have more of an opportunity to take action, or who just may be more willing at a certain time.
Delaying taking action may not address the behaviour in the moment, but it may help provide time for building skills and creating strategies to more effectively intervene and prevent in the future. For example, if an unacceptable behaviour is less ‘clear cut’, you may want to do some research or ask others their opinions on whether intervention would be necessary, and what intervention might be best. It also may help situations diffuse, and provide more of an opportunity to get through to others.
Distraction is a specific method of direct action which may be a helpful ‘go-to’ act in situations that may be escalating and need diffusion, or in situations where is it unclear where you and others may draw the line between acceptable and unacceptable. Distracting, for example through the form of changing the conversation, or even proactively putting a positive spin on what is happening or being discussed (without being too obvious), doesn’t explicitly indicate your intolerance with/ for a certain behaviour, which can produce both positive and negative effects.
Other forms of active intervention that may seem more subtle, but are still completely valid, include:
Choosing not to laugh and an offensive joke
Body language signalling disapproval
Leaving a room or social occasion
Not continuing with friendships or professional relationships
Educating others about unacceptable behaviours or active intervention
As suggested, different circumstances may call for different action (or inaction) to be taken. Additionally, different people will align themselves to different strategies based on their upbringing, their communities, their experiences, and other contributing factors.
It’s important to note that all forms of active intervention, and even inaction, are correct and valid, if they are the right thing to do at the time. In order to assess this, the following points of consideration are vital to remember and revisit:
Is it safe to take any kind of action?
Is it safe to take action in this particular way?
Is there another action that can be taken that might be more effective and/ or safe?
Additionally, please note, active interventions don’t necessarily only have to be enacted in isolation of one another – do as many as is needed for you to feel right and safe. And finally, it’s never too late to take action – prevention of future unacceptable behaviours is arguably the most effective form or bystander intervention
References and Further Reading:
There's plenty of excellent research to enhance your knowledge on this topic. The below is a selection of what I have used to inform my knowledge and this opinion post.
Banyard, V. L. (2011). Who will help prevent sexual violence: Creating an ecological model of bystander intervention. Psychology of Violence, 1(3), 216–229. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0023739
Banyard, V.L., Moynihan, M.M. & Plant, E.G. (2007). Sexual violence prevention through bystander education: An experimental evaluation. https://doi.org/10.1002/jcop.20159
Hamby, S., Weber, M. C., Grych, J., & Banyard, V. (2016). What difference do bystanders make? The association of bystander involvement with victim outcomes in a community sample. Psychology of Violence, 6(1), 91–102. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0039073
Fenton RA, Mott HL. Evaluation of the Intervention Initiative: A Bystander Intervention Program to Prevent Violence Against Women in Universities. Violence Vict. 2018;33(4):645-662. doi:10.1891/0886-6708.VV-D-16-00074
Fenton RA, Mott HL. Evaluation of the Intervention Initiative: A Bystander Intervention Program to Prevent Violence Against Women in Universities. Violence Vict. 2018;33(4):645-662. doi:10.1891/0886-6708.VV-D-16-00074
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