Would you help someone in trouble?

[Mumbling]

I guess since I'm only 17 myself the 14 year olds would still see me as an equal and a target, I would not have the authority like someone of the age of 25+. Next to that I'm weak, physically wise, and would not be able to defend myself.

[WeirdRaptor]

I voted on the middle choice, but I think you should have added in a fourth option, which is what I actually would do:

Yes, I would help someone by calling the cops or some authority, but would still try to do what I could in the meantime or if required by the authorities.

[Nimrod]

Really? What about if you see a little boy or girl around 10 years being bullied by one or two older ones, let¥s say 14 years. Wouldn¥t you try to help if they are not armored? I definitly would. My sence for protection is very high, so I would definitly help in any case where the others aren¥t armored.

This is the scenario where I am very likely to intervene when I see the 14 year olds turning violent or trying to force the kids to give them money or anything.
There has been a case in 2009 here in Germany which shocked the nation though. Dominik Brunner, a 40 year old businessman intervened when he saw a group of teenagers threatened by a 17 and a drunken 18 year old. He called the police and he left the train on the same station as the two offenders did. On the platform they beat him up kicking him even when he was lying on the ground.
Dominik Brunner died (to a healthy man the kicking alone wouldn't have been lethal, but he had a heard condition). Brunner was was posthumously honored and the nation was shocked that none of the witnesses had intervened.
However, court inquiry also stated that very likely Brunner was the first one to actually hit one of the teenagers.

I¥ve heard about that. It¥s really sad to see that he was the only one who acted. I don¥t know, but I can¥t stand it to see someone being bullied. If there is a possibility to build up a group and try to solve the conflict, I would definitly do it. I prefer the way of speaking, so I would try to prevent starting a fight or something.

[Nimrod]

I fear my answer is not among the answers you've given as options. I'd help, but only if I knew the person.

Really? What about if you see a little boy or girl around 10 years being bullied by one or two older ones, let¥s say 14 years. Wouldn¥t you try to help if they are not armored? I definitly would. My sence for protection is very high, so I would definitly help in any case where the others aren¥t armored.

No. Sorry to kill the hero you may see in me but I'm a coward when it comes to bullies. I've been bullied so much in my life that I do not act up if a kid is being bullied, certainly not by 14 year olds since they are usually the most aggressive and annoying age level you can get them.

I see your point there and it¥s totally ok. I¥ve been bullied as well. But I learned to act in a way that the others understand I didn¥t want that. Not by fighting, but just ignoring them, or even scream at them to make my point clear.

Maybe that¥s why I can¥t really stand it to see others being bullied. Because I know how horrible it is and I don¥t want anybody else to feel how that is.

[Ducky123]

Intervene... Especially, if the attacked person is a girl.

Just standing around like a piece of trash is just so off if you ask me... I mean, as long as it's a fight on the same level, let them fight as long as nobody gets considerably hurt. But if a person is lying on the ground, bleeding, receiving punches, blows and kicks despite being unable to fend off the violent attack, it's our DUTY to intervene, to stop the violence, to prevent the victim from receiving more possibly severe damage.

I'm not strong, admittedly, and I'm usually not exactly a brave person (especially in the area of the other sex ) but I'm helpful and not tolerating unfairness (I can be quite rebellious sometimes if something that can be changed in my opinion annoyes me). If I see somebody in trouble, I'd try to help as best as I can, and if it means putting myself at risk...

[Deatharte]

Honestly?  I'd just keep walking.  Nobody's life is worth risking my own for.  If they're getting attacked, they probably did something to deserve it, anyways.

[aabicus (LettuceBacon&Tomato)]

Not to sound callous, but I'm supporting a wife and two roommates, since I'm the only one of us with a job and paying our rent.

I honestly think I can help more people in the world by staying alive and not getting shanked in an alleyway.

I would certainly look for options to help that don't involve my personal skin, such as calling the police, but I don't think I'd help the situation much by diving into the melee.

[jansenov]

Weird as it may seem, but I never saw another person being bullied. And I have been bullied myself only at the rarest occasions. I'd like to think I'd intervene at risk of personal injury or shame, but I probably wouldn't. About 4 and a half years ago ,while I was riding on a tram, I saw something really weird. A 40(ish) year old man and 16-17 year old girl entered the tram, and the man was holding the girl by the upper right arm. He wasn't leaning on her. During the ride they were standing and he kept holding her firmly. The girl was offering no resistance and I couldn't make out her emotional state by glancing at her face. It was confusing, so I looked at the other people to see what they're thinking, but all I could see that the people seemed unphased, possibly skillfuly ignoring the whole scene. So he just kept holding her as the tram went through two stations. I wanted to ask the man why is he doing that, but I cowered and rationalized that since I couldn't make out discomfort on the girl's face, that I should just let them go. And so they stepped down to the street, the man still holding her. Soon I lost them out of sight. To this day I have no idea what was that all about.

[rhombus]

I chose the second option, as if direction intervention would lead to significant risk to myself then I would seek the help of the authorities.  However, if there was not a significant risk to myself, such as if the person had a medical episode for example, then I would directly intervene until help arrived.

Regretfully, I have had one incident like this which occurred about six months ago.  I was walking from one building on campus to another when I heard someone yelling for help in a nearby parking lot.  I ran to the scene to see a woman collapsed face down on the pavement with one person trying to get her to wake up and several onlookers doing nothing.  Remembering what I learned during my emergency training courses, I specifically called on one of the onlookers to get help (i.e.  "You.  Call for an ambulance now!") and I ran to get immediate help (as I am not a medical professional).  Luckily for this woman, she had collapsed in the parking lot right next to the nursing offices on campus, so there was no shortage of nurses, nurses aides, and doctors in the vicinity.  I knocked on a few doors and interrupted a nursing class in order to get some help.  Thankfully, they were able to get the woman stabilized before the EMTs arrived.

The bystander effect is something that makes me incredibly angry.  It never ceases to amaze me how just asking on one person to do something suddenly changes their psychological perspective from "it isn't my problem" to "it is my responsibility".  In the case that I mentioned, thankfully the woman only suffered from mild complications.  Considering the 20-something year old woman had had a stroke with loss of consciousness, obvious cognitive impairment, and severe seizing, it could have been far worse.