Many media outlets referred to what happened as a "mass panic" or a "stampede." But such terms are not appropriate to the situation, according to John Drury, a social psychologist at the University of Sussex.
"People follow others when they perceive these others as relevant, so it is not mindless," Drury says. "The problems come when the others don't take the danger seriously enough. People more often die in emergencies through not evacuating quickly rather than through haste."
Stampeding is a primitive, instinctive behavior of herd animals, and panic implies a rashness or irrationality in response to a real or perceived danger, Drury writes on his academic blog. But crowds shouldn't be compared to unintentional, mindless mobs. Instead Drury refers to these events as progressive crowd collapses.
Shared identity in the crowd (eg. "Cubs fans"), exit design, crowd traffic control, and sight lines are all factors in stampedes. The researchers are modeling different mitigation strategies like precise position monitoring via GPS event bracelets.
(Score: 2) by AnonymousCowardNoMore on Wednesday November 09 2016, @06:32PM
Sounds like selfish action to me. If I'm already at the door and it's faster to go through the one open door than open the remaining door, I could gain a negligible advantage* by leaving everyone behind me to their own devices. (* Little can still affect you by the time you're at the door. I'm talking extreme self-centred reasoning just-in-case. FYGM in action.)
(Score: 2) by Whoever on Wednesday November 09 2016, @06:49PM
It wasn't. It would have been quicker for any individual to break out of line and open the second door. If anything other than people being too relaxed about the evauation, it was people assuming that the other door was locked and not challenging that assumption.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday November 10 2016, @01:45AM
Something similar I have done before - car is broken down and causing a blockage on a highway. I have waited in the queue, got to the break down and then driven straight past. I should stop and push the car to the shoulder but I never do. Why not?
1. I am worried that the person in the car will be grumpy and have a go
2. I am worried that other people around me will be grumpy and have a go
3. I dont feel confident enough to safely stop, blocking the traffic, and attempt to move the car (what if I am not strong enough? people will think I am an idiot etc)
4. I get no benefit from moving the stranded car (beyond a warm fuzzy feeling if it all works out okay).
So I leave the car broken down blocking a lane and drive on, like the other thousands of cars on the highway.