Interesting people behaviour in crowds

[IPFreeley]

My wife and I went to the state fair this past weekend. It was moderately crowded, but not too bad. One thing were found confusing was how people tend to act in crowds. For example, we wanted to go into a small building to view the animals inside and there was a line of at least 25 people, but strangely enough, for no reason. We walked by them and went inside through the garage-sized door and viewed the animals. It's almost like everyone was wanting to start at one side and making their way around the edge although there was no sign stating that had to be done. It was an open area with cages for people to move around in any direction or order they wish.
Another example was a barn that had machinery in it again with a long line. We bypassed them and looked at what we wanted to. There was more of a pathway here since there were ropes to keep people away from some machines, but no forced pathway or direction to walk. Coming out, I caught the eye of one of the people in line and said there was no line and no need to wait. Amazingly, he seemed timid and stayed. One lady heard and jumped out of line and started to go inside. We bought laughed and though it unusual.
Final example was the ticket line for the grandstand. 2 ticket booths amost side by side with two ticketsellers inside, 4 total. Area was very crowded with others walking by. I noted at least 100 people standing in line coming from one direction, maybe 15 standing in line from the other direction. <?> Meanwhile, each line seemed to be going to only one of two ticketsellers in each booth. We simply got in a line about 3 deep and bought our tickets.
I don't know if it's southern hospitality about being polite and not wanting to jump a line, or just people doing what others are without thinking without understanding why.
I know that if I'm at a buffet, and I am in line with others and I see something ahead that I want and no one is there yet, I will jump ahead and get what I want. Most people don't seem to do that. I just see it as more efficient.

[Glory]

Some friends and I once conducted an experiment. We stood on a street corner , five of us, in such a way as to suggest a lineup. This was in a downtown kind of area and there was a couple of stores and a restaurant near where we were standing. It took about five minutes before some people walked up and, wordlessly, got in line behind us. After twenty minutes there were about 15 peopled cued up behind us. At that point we decided to let everyone know that we were not actually waiting for anything other than them and people like them who might join our cue but we didn't know how. We had no idea what they thought they were waiting for. We finally just decided to walk away. I have no idea what happened after that. I wonder if they all just stepped forward and were joined by others. I wonder if the cue got any longer.

People will do what they think they are supposed to do. If people are waiting, they must be doing so for a reason. That must be the way things are supposed to be. If a line is short, there must be a reason for that too. Maybe there is something wrong with that booth. "All those people waiting in the longer lines aren't stupid", they think, "they must know something that I don't." Their worst fear is looking stupid or provoking confrontation. Better to just go with the flow.

Glory

[arcticpenguin]

I've noticed a different phenomenon, people want what others have.

Some friends and I were grilling at a park on a holiday. We were waiting for the charcoal to heat up so we wandered over to the playground, which was full of small children and their watchers. One piece of equipment was a pulley with a handle hanging from a cable on a gentle slope. You take it to the top of the hill, hang on, and glide down the cable until the end, where there is a canvas supported by ropes to cushion the end of the ride. It was not in use, so we tried it, and it was fun. All the children saw us and now wanted to try the same piece of equipment. We had 'put it into play'. The queue grew quickly, so we went back to our barbecue.

By the time we were through eating, the queue had dissipated, so we tried it again. Once again, all the kids saw us having fun and decided they needed to try it.

You will see similar behaviour from adults in the stock market, in the romance market, and with collectibles.

[Glory]

Originally posted by arcticpenguin
I've noticed a different phenomenon, people want what others have.

Some friends and I were grilling at a park on a holiday. We were waiting for the charcoal to heat up so we wandered over to the playground, which was full of small children and their watchers. One piece of equipment was a pulley with a handle hanging from a cable on a gentle slope. You take it to the top of the hill, hang on, and glide down the cable until the end, where there is a canvas supported by ropes to cushion the end of the ride. It was not in use, so we tried it, and it was fun. All the children saw us and now wanted to try the same piece of equipment. We had 'put it into play'. The queue grew quickly, so we went back to our barbecue.

By the time we were through eating, the queue had dissipated, so we tried it again. Once again, all the kids saw us having fun and decided they needed to try it.

You will see similar behaviour from adults in the stock market, in the romance market, and with collectibles.

And in stores and restaurants. Working in malls over the years I have seen the phenomenon many times. People will not enter an empty store until someone else has gone in. Once the first person goes in then we'll get a flood of customers. Also, no one wants the first peice of a cake. When I worked in a cafe with one of those big glass baked goods cases, we always made sure to take the first two slices of a new cake and display them on plates, because nobody would ever ask us to cut into a new cake. The thinking is that it must not be very good because it isn't popular. Of course they are ignoring the possibility that we have just finished selling the last peice of another cake and thus have put a new one out. They seem to be incapable of imagining anything happening to cake before they got there.


Glory

[IPFreeley]

It's the same way with driving. If there's a traffic light that's stuck on red, no one will go until someone does, then others will follow.

My best story is when I was going upstairs in a building after a meeting with many others. The staircase was wide and had a rail in the middle. Everyone was jamming up on the right side to go upstairs. No one was on the left side at all, so I started up. Only then did others start coming behind me. It's almost like people dont' want to be exposed and want to follow others.

[Kilted_Canuck]

Chalk up another supporting anecdote from Mcdonalds (the kind inside the Wal-mart)

When its not a usual meal time, we'll either have no orders, or one person will come in, followed by 5 or more others within a minute. Sometimes up to 15 seperate groups of people will come in to buy something, as long as there's one person already in line. I even timed it once, 17 minutes without a customer, then one customer followed by 7 more within a minute and a half, followed by 10 minutes without a new customer.

[hgc]

I don't care what the DNA evidence says. Look at the bahavioral evidence. Cows, not chimpanzees, are our closest living relatives.

[Blue Ribbon]

If you want to see human behavior protocol in action, walk into a crowded elevator and face toward the back of the elevator, instead of the doors. You wil see some uncomfortable (and perhaps angry) faces staring back at you.


Human elevator behavior is almost more predictible than army ant behavior. Follow these rules: Walk in, do a 180, then periodically stare up at the floor indicator lights, above the doors. If there are two people, both of you should lean against the oppossing walls. With four people, everyone takes a corner, and so on....

[Glory]

There are specific reasons for those(elevator) behaviours, though. It is a small space and people do not like to get that close to strangers so they gravitate toward the points furthest away from each other. It makes sense to orient yourself facing the doors because that it the direction where you will walk when the doors open and because you will respond better if you can observe the doors opening. People also dislike being stared at which is difficult to avoid when in such a confined space. The only thing to do is look away which in an elevator means looking up. Lastly, any light will automatically draw our eyes toward it especially against a very bland background such as the inside of most elevators. It isn't just a case of people acting like sheep or blindly following societal rules. Watch people in a glass elevator. They act differently. They tend to look out at the view rather than face the doors. They also tend to use the fact that there is a view to break the ice and act more casually. They even speak sometimes which is highly unusual in mundane elevators because people don't like the idea of being overheard by strangers. The presence of a young child in the elevator also serves as an ice breaker. Virtually everyone will smile at child who wants to push the button and who makes a comment aboput the sensation of movement.

Glory

[Professor Frink]

Originally posted by Glory


And in stores and restaurants. Working in malls over the years I have seen the phenomenon many times. People will not enter an empty store until someone else has gone in. Once the first person goes in then we'll get a flood of customers. Also, no one wants the first peice of a cake. When I worked in a cafe with one of those big glass baked goods cases, we always made sure to take the first two slices of a new cake and display them on plates, because nobody would ever ask us to cut into a new cake. The thinking is that it must not be very good because it isn't popular. Of course they are ignoring the possibility that we have just finished selling the last peice of another cake and thus have put a new one out. They seem to be incapable of imagining anything happening to cake before they got there.


Glory

I did something similar the other day - there was a luggage store in the mall with 1 visible employee. I circled my kid's stroller around until someone entered the store. I was able to browse quickly through the stuff I wanted to see while the employee was distracted with a question from the other shopper. Sometimes I just don't want to be social and would rather shop in anonymity.

Another story - I went to a large middle school that had these great big windows from floor to ceiling. One day, for fun, a teacher decided to stand next to one of the windows looking high up into the sky. Within 30 seconds, there were scores of students pushing their way to the window trying to look up - everyone was asking "what's up there?"

Final story - I had a friend who told me that if you want to see if someone is looking at you, look at your watch. If they immediately look at their watch, they're looking at you.

[Candace]

When the husby and I have to stand in line at the Rodent's Kingdom (aka Di$neyworld) after about ten minutes, he'll begin to Moooooo. Very softly. Like you can't tell where it's coming from.
Just ... mooooooo... every couple minutes.
Within five minutes, people are twitching their heads back and forth, looking for the moo-er.

Another thing he does, when we go to Halloween Horror Nights (go if you ever get the chance, it kicks!) at Universal, he'll substitute "Brrrrrrainnnnnnnssssss!" for moo...

My favorite is to stand in an absolutely packed area - no room to move, mill about, or anything - and then begin to hum. Very very softly. See how many people you can get to join in. I've had great success with the Gilligan's Island theme, also with the old Andy Griffith song. If you want them to leave, hum "Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald". It seriously does work.

On the subject of the "I can't be the first to order that..."
I work in a popular chain restaurant. We recently added nacho platters to the menu. They take about 15 minutes to make, and are an extrodinary pain in the kiester.

If we get through lunch without one order, the day is good.
If we get ONE order, during lunch, it is an absolute GIVEN we will make at least seven of them. I've taken to telling the waits "Hide this until you get to the table," because I really really hate making them.

[michaellee]

There is one gasoline station within a 30 mile radius that always has the lowest price per gallon; it is located immediately off of the only major thoroughfare(freeway 101 in norcal); thus it ALWAYS has patrons. This station has 3 islands, each with 6 pumps, 3 on each side, so in a perfect world, 18 autos can pump gas simultaneously.

This, of course, never is the case. The entrance to any of the 3 islands is the same, a one way entrance, with room for only one car at a time to enter, with the exit located beyond the islands, also one-way.

It never fails, as each time I try to pull in, there are 2 or 3 cars backed up at the entrance, and one would think this is because all the pumps at the 3 islands are in use. NOT! I have figured out why this occurs, and there are three reasons.

#1 Most cars' gasoline tanks are located on the driver side rear panel, while a few are located at the rear behind the license plate. This fact leads most patrons to pull their cars up only on the right side of an island, believing this the most practical if the only possible way for the hose to reach the gas tank.

#2 Most customers are repeat customers, and will unconsciously return to the same pump each visit, regardless if it is occupied and other pumps are vacant.

#3 Some drivers take the trouble to stop, pump the gas, but only put in 5 or 10 dollars, meaning they have to frequent the station more times.

I don't know about others feelings when fueling their vehicle, but I want it to be as quick as possible, without thought, so I can be on my way to wherever I may be headed. It appears this to be a truism for most other drivers based on the facial expressions and overall demeanor I see each time I fill my tank.

It never fails as I jump the curb around the 3 vehicles waiting for God knows what, because I know the left hand lane of each island is vacant as Church on SuperBowl Sunday. And my gas tank is located on the driver side rear panel! So as the other drivers witness me pull up, I try to teach them that they can do what I do, and not have to wait! I make it very clear as I lift the pump, then stretch the hose across the rear of my car, and somehow manage to insert the nozzle into my gas tank, and pump away. CAn you imagine?? They actually make the hoses long enough to be able to reach the far side of a car's gas tank!

But those who see me do this simply shy away, and wait for the right island pumps to open, while traffic backs up behind them as they block the entrance. What the hell is this all about? STOP IT PEOPLE! PLEASE! PULL YOUR CAR UP TO ANY VACANT PUMP, I promise the hose will reach your tank, and you won't be appearing on Candid Camera or the like!

Idiots!

[Glory]

Nevermind stretching the hose across. How about just getting people to pull all the way forward to the last available pump? It never fails when I go to get gas. Someone always parks themselves right in the middle of the island. This ensures that they and only they can get gas while the rest of us wait. If they would pick a pump, preferably the forward most, than I could pull in behind them or go around towards the front but no. This is not possible for them. They just sit their derrieres in the middle and chat a while before fueling up. I am so glad I don't carry a gun.

Glory

[michaellee]

....I am so glad I don't carry a gun....

A lighter makes a nice substitute when fueling up..... and those nasty, accidental spills are highly combustible-- I hear.........

[rdaneel]

I work at the Snowmass ski resort near Aspen, and when I was in the lifts department it never ceased to amaze me that people would bypass the "slow" lift near the bottom to go to the "fast" lift a little farther down. The people end up waiting 30-45 minutes in line, while the "slow" lift (which is a 15 minute ride) would be empty.

[Glory]

I wish there were more ski lifts in ordinary life. That way the person who stops and stands in the way of foot traffic while searching for their keyes or looking at the photos they just picked up will get hit in the head by the next chair. Why are people possessed to stop in front of the door way while they figure out where they are going?

Glory

[magimix]

These a really great examples everyone is posting. Glad to see odd crowd conventions are the same the world over.

With regards to petrol pumps reaching the other side of the car - maybe things are different in the US, but of the handleful of times I've been desperate enough to try a pump on the 'wrong' side of the car (here in the UK), the hoses were barely long enough, and on a couple of occasions *weren't * long enough (which caused me some blushes!).

When I lived in London I always used to see funny behaviour on the tubes. Hordes of people sitting stolidly in silence, staring at the floor, or at the ceiling, doing their best to make sure they don't accidently speak to anyone. Quite similar to 'lift' behaviour actually. Further to that, in the mornings you'd be in a crowd of hundreds, tramping though the tunnels between platforms in near silence. Just the sounds people milling about, but no one is really talking to each other.

[Glory]

Originally posted by magimix
These a really great examples everyone is posting. Glad to see odd crowd conventions are the same the world over.

With regards to petrol pumps reaching the other side of the car - maybe things are different in the US, but of the handleful of times I've been desperate enough to try a pump on the 'wrong' side of the car (here in the UK), the hoses were barely long enough, and on a couple of occasions *weren't * long enough (which caused me some blushes!).

When I lived in London I always used to see funny behaviour on the tubes. Hordes of people sitting stolidly in silence, staring at the floor, or at the ceiling, doing their best to make sure they don't accidently speak to anyone. Quite similar to 'lift' behaviour actually. Further to that, in the mornings you'd be in a crowd of hundreds, tramping though the tunnels between platforms in near silence. Just the sounds people milling about, but no one is really talking to each other.

Have you ever try talking to any of them? I have on a couple of occasions. I either get the, "looking at her will only encourage her" behaviour or I get completely ignored. A couple of times small children have looked at me and them looked at their parents as if to say, "she's talking to me! What do I do? What do I do?!" May be they are reacting to something else.

Glory

[Supercharts]

When I was much younger and had money (before I got married etc.) I tried to make some $'s by trading in futures. (Hah!)

Two books were always mentioned as basic reading/educational material for the investor: "The Crowd - A Study of the Popular Mind" by Gustave Le Bon and "Extraordinary Popular Delusions and the Madness of Crowds" by Charles Mackay, L.L.D.

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0486419568/qid=1068045937/sr=ka-1/ref=pd_ka_1/103-4234853-6277449

[Jon_in_london]

It is my punishment for being a sinning athiest that whatever queue I join will be the one with the complete and utter moron-nincompoop who will take 150000000x times longer than anyone else to do whatever it is they have to do. This is not just casual observation but I have proved this scientifitcally and it is now published in the International Journal of For Christ's Sake Why me!?

[Jon_in_london]

Originally posted by magimix
When I lived in London I always used to see funny behaviour on the tubes. Hordes of people sitting stolidly in silence, staring at the floor, or at the ceiling, doing their best to make sure they don't accidently speak to anyone. Quite similar to 'lift' behaviour actually. Further to that, in the mornings you'd be in a crowd of hundreds, tramping though the tunnels between platforms in near silence. Just the sounds people milling about, but no one is really talking to each other.

Whats the point in speaking to the other people? What would you say? Its a frickin tube not a singles bar, everyone is pissed off hot and fighting off the inevitable sense of claustrophobia that all people feel when underground.


Anyway, I dont stare at floor or ceiling. I either hang my head out the window like a dog in a car or I stare at the erogenous areas of nubile young females.

[JesFine]

Originally posted by Blue Ribbon
If you want to see human behavior protocol in action, walk into a crowded elevator and face toward the back of the elevator, instead of the doors. You wil see some uncomfortable (and perhaps angry) faces staring back at you.


Human elevator behavior is almost more predictible than army ant behavior. Follow these rules: Walk in, do a 180, then periodically stare up at the floor indicator lights, above the doors. If there are two people, both of you should lean against the oppossing walls. With four people, everyone takes a corner, and so on.... There are some hilarious old Candid Camera episodes that play on this. In one, a man (the dupe) gets on a crowded elevator (all actors), at some point everyone but the dupe does a complete 180. The reaction of the poor guy is different depending on the person but almost always hilarious and absolutely always results it him turning around as well. Some people look startled before doing it, which you would expect, but some people act like they've done it a million times.

Good stuff.

[Badger]

With regards to people stopping in doorways/top or bottom of escalators/outside elevator doors to decide what to do next, I used to work as undercover store security. Whenever I'd see these folks, I'd contrive to get in front of them, and then I'd stop, looking around stupidly, and generally blocking their way.

They sure seemed to get upset about it. Couldn't take what they unconciously dish out, I guess.

But it made me laugh, anyway, and that's all that counts.

[Jon_in_london]

Originally posted by Badger
With regards to people stopping in doorways/top or bottom of escalators/outside elevator doors to decide what to do next,

This kind of thing can be quite dangerous on the tube.

People sometimes get to the end of the escalator and just stop and stand and gape around. Of course, you are coming up just a half a foot behind them and at speed so you have nowhere to go but straight into them. Just the other day I had to knock a German tourist over. She wasnt happy and neither was I. She started screaming at me in German so I ended up swearing at her and giving her the NAZI salute, something I feel bad about now but at the time.......... Crowds can be very stressfull situations and its remarkable how few people seem to be concious of what they are doing and how they may be obstructing others, even in the midst of thousands of very rushed and short tempered fellow humans.

[arcticpenguin]

Last night on my way home a group of youngsters (undergraduates?) was coming down the sidewalk 4 abreast. I took the very edge of the sidewalk and arched my arm to force some room for myself. I actually bumped a couple of them as we passed. They all turned around to look at me like I was crazy. Not one of them had the courtesy to apologise.

I remember a similar situation at a previous time and place. A college girl was chatting with her companions, again 3 or 4 abreast. I stopped in my tracks and she ran smack into me.

Kids these days.

[Glory]

Originally posted by arcticpenguin
Last night on my way home a group of youngsters (undergraduates?) was coming down the sidewalk 4 abreast. I took the very edge of the sidewalk and arched my arm to force some room for myself. I actually bumped a couple of them as we passed. They all turned around to look at me like I was crazy. Not one of them had the courtesy to apologise.

I remember a similar situation at a previous time and place. A college girl was chatting with her companions, again 3 or 4 abreast. I stopped in my tracks and she ran smack into me.

Kids these days.

I usually encounter this behaviour in shopping centers and it is most often committed by elderly women.

And they have been doing it for years and years.

Glory

[athon]

Originally posted by Glory


I usually encounter this behaviour in shopping centers and it is most often committed by elderly women.

And they have been doing it for years and years.

Glory

I agree. In my experience with working in cafes, most rude offences are committed by the elderly. It's as if the world owes them something. While no age group is exempt from committing social faux pas, to my surprise Grandma and Grandpa were the most frequent criminals in the land of Grace.

Athon

[IPFreeley]

Perhaps the elderly commit these errors more because of their lessened cognitive ability or senses that are not as acute. Perhaps they cannot hear others around them or their peripheral vision is poor. I dislike small children. The never look where they are going.

[Glory]

Originally posted by IPFreeley
Perhaps the elderly commit these errors more because of their lessened cognitive ability or senses that are not as acute. Perhaps they cannot hear others around them or their peripheral vision is poor. I dislike small children. The never look where they are going.

There are a number of reasons behind the behaviour so commonly noted in elderly people. What it all amounts to though is someone with whom is difficult to deal. The same thing goes for small children and larger ones. They lack the experience and life lessons required to be thoughtful and mindful of others. Regardless, they drive you nuts when you encounter them.

Glory

[Dragonrock]

Originally posted by Glory


There are a number of reasons behind the behaviour so commonly noted in elderly people. What it all amounts to though is someone with whom is difficult to deal. The same thing goes for small children and larger ones. They lack the experience and life lessons required to be thoughtful and mindful of others. Regardless, they drive you nuts when you encounter them.

Glory

I believe it was Art Linkletter who said that he loves talking to children and the elderly. Because children don't know what they're saying and the elderly don't care.

[roger]

One thing I mull about while sitting at a cafe watching the madding crowds is how similiar human behavior is to animal behavior. The flocks of birds that swoop and swerve in the sky, the squirrels gathering their nuts, the pigeons fighting over my dropped croissant, and the people swerving around the mail carrier, all look the same to me. While we are thinking creatures, we do a heck of a lot on automatic pilot.

[Phaycops]

To add to the "I don't wanna be the first" category: Why oh why can't people use all available doors? I've seen this in almost every single building I've ever gone into. There's this huge wall of like four doors, and people are only using two of them (one door for in and one door for out)! Why?! I always just hop right through the unused door.

Try this: sit in a bar or other crowded area where you won't be noticed eavesdropping. Start talking about something, say, Michael Jackson, or a TV show. Something that people aren't already talking about. See how long it takes to travel around the room. Pretty soon EVERYONE will be talking about it! It's fun!

[69dodge]

I'll be zipping along in the left lane at 90 or 100 mph, just about to pass someone doing 60, who has, for the longest time, been sitting happily behind the car in front of him, when he suddenly decides, upon seeing me, that he too would like to pass people. Except he wants to do it at 61 mph. So I get to slam on the brakes, and then enjoy a long leisurely drive behind him, until he finally completes his pass.

Had he waited a very few seconds more, I could have passed him easily and been long gone. But nooo . . .

The funny thing is, I frequently notice myself almost doing the same thing when I'm in the right lane. But I stop myself, and let the faster car pass first before I pull out. And then I pass quickly.