How did Le Bon see crowds?
French social psychologist Gustave Le Bon argued that in a crowd, anonymity strips away personal responsibility, emotions spread by contagion, and people become highly suggestible to leaders. Even rational individuals turn impulsive. Later psychologists called this state deindividuation.
What did Milgram find, and what do modern theories say?
In 1968 Milgram had people stand on a New York sidewalk staring up at a building. With one gazer, 4% of passersby stopped; with 15 gazers, 40% stopped and looked up too—conformity scales with crowd size. But modern researchers like Stephen Reicher argue crowds aren't simply irrational; they act on shared social identity and norms. The same lens is used for online pile-ons and viral trends.
FAQ
- Is crowd behavior always bad?
- No—it also shows up as solidarity at games, vigils, and in disaster cooperation.
- Is it related to the bystander effect?
- Yes—larger crowds diffuse responsibility, making each person less likely to help.
Sources reviewed: 2026-10-25
References
- Le Bon, G. (1895). Psychologie des foules. Félix Alcan.
- Reicher, S. (1984). The St. Pauls' riot: An explanation of the limits of crowd action in terms of a social identity model. European Journal of Social Psychology, 14(1), 1–21.
- Milgram, S., Bickman, L., & Berkowitz, L. (1969). Note on the drawing power of crowds of different size. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 13(2), 79–82.