# Psychology myths, checked against the record

Source page: https://underthebehavior.com/myths

Psychology myths debunked, one row at a time: the famous version of a study or case, what the record says, and the minute in our video that shows it.

The 1964 story says 38 neighbors did nothing. In 2016, The New York Times wrote that two people called the police. The New York Times, 1964 and 2016

## The myth vs the record
- The myth: The record
- You can read a lie in someone's body language.: In a review of 206 studies, people were right 54% of the time. Experts did no better. Bond and DePaulo, 2006 [The full record](https://underthebehavior.com/myths/dark-psychology)
- A liar looks up and to the right.: In three tests, including 52 real public appeals, eye direction did not tell lies from truths. Wiseman and colleagues, 2012 [The full record](https://underthebehavior.com/myths/dark-psychology)
- Hidden messages in ads make people buy things.: A brand flashed too fast to see nudged drink choice in a lab, mainly in thirsty students. Nobody measured shopping. Karremans and colleagues, 2006 [The full record](https://underthebehavior.com/myths/dark-psychology)
- Milgram proved anyone will hurt someone when told to.: In 1963, 26 of 40 men went to the end. Across 21 versions, fewer than half did. Milgram, 1963. Haslam and colleagues, 2014 [The full record](https://underthebehavior.com/myths/dark-psychology)
- The Stanford prison experiment proved power makes people cruel.: An archive study found the guards were given precise instructions on how to treat the prisoners. Le Texier, 2019 [Watch the part that checks it](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-RGCwyy1tZY&t=115s) [The full record](https://underthebehavior.com/myths/dark-psychology)
- When others are around, nobody will help you.: In 219 filmed street conflicts, at least one bystander helped in 9 of every 10. Philpot and colleagues, 2020 [Watch the part that checks it](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s11l3z8RNpc&t=606s) [The full record](https://underthebehavior.com/myths/dark-psychology)
- The men were prisoners made to starve.: They were conscientious objectors who answered a pamphlet. Hundreds said yes, and 36 were picked. Kalm and Semba, 2005 [Watch the part that checks it](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZQC6Kx2vdfU&t=79s) [The full record](https://underthebehavior.com/episodes/minnesota-starvation-experiment)
- None of the men broke the diet.: Two volunteers broke the diet and were let go. The results rest on 32 of the 36. Kalm and Semba, 2005 [Watch the part that checks it](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZQC6Kx2vdfU&t=181s) [The full record](https://underthebehavior.com/episodes/minnesota-starvation-experiment)
- Once they could eat again, the men were fine.: The survivors interviewed were not back to normal after three months. Their guesses ran from two months to two years. Kalm and Semba, 2005 [Watch the part that checks it](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZQC6Kx2vdfU&t=396s) [The full record](https://underthebehavior.com/episodes/minnesota-starvation-experiment)
- The study fed postwar Europe.: Findings went to relief groups and the military. Earl Heckman, a volunteer, said the experiment was a little late. Kalm and Semba, 2005 [Watch the part that checks it](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZQC6Kx2vdfU&t=491s) [The full record](https://underthebehavior.com/episodes/minnesota-starvation-experiment)
- The men came to regret it.: All 18 survivors interviewed said they would sign up again. A 2021 paper still calls it unethical research. Kalm and Semba, 2005, and Lederman and Voo, 2021 [Watch the part that checks it](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZQC6Kx2vdfU&t=585s) [The full record](https://underthebehavior.com/episodes/minnesota-starvation-experiment)
- The guards were given no instructions.: Zimbardo told them they could create boredom, frustration and fear, to some degree. Both sides print his words. Zimbardo, 2018. Le Texier, 2019 [Watch the part that checks it](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-RGCwyy1tZY&t=115s) [The full record](https://underthebehavior.com/episodes/stanford-prison-experiment)
- The guards made up their own rules.: Le Texier says 11 of the 17 rules were copied from a dorm prison run three months earlier. Le Texier, 2019 [Watch the part that checks it](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-RGCwyy1tZY&t=210s) [The full record](https://underthebehavior.com/episodes/stanford-prison-experiment)
- Zimbardo told the guards to be brutal.: Zimbardo wrote that the guards were never told to be brutal, and that physical force was banned. Zimbardo, 2018 [Watch the part that checks it](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-RGCwyy1tZY&t=276s) [The full record](https://underthebehavior.com/episodes/stanford-prison-experiment)
- The guard nicknamed John Wayne got lost in his role.: He told Stanford Magazine his act was planned. He recalls no explicit cues, and nobody told him to stop. Stanford Magazine, 2011. Stanford Daily, 2018 [Watch the part that checks it](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-RGCwyy1tZY&t=353s) [The full record](https://underthebehavior.com/episodes/stanford-prison-experiment)
- The role alone made ordinary people cruel.: Even the 1972 report says the cues built into the study exerted some directing influence. Haney, Banks and Zimbardo, 1972 [Watch the part that checks it](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-RGCwyy1tZY&t=276s) [The full record](https://underthebehavior.com/episodes/stanford-prison-experiment)
- Albert came to fear everything white and furry.: He kept playing with his blocks. Ten days on, his reaction to the rat was much less marked. Watson and Rayner, 1920 [Watch the part that checks it](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c_t9kij_hqo&t=181s) [The full record](https://underthebehavior.com/episodes/little-albert-experiment)
- Watson cured the fear before the study ended.: Albert left the hospital on the day of the last tests. Nobody ever tried to remove the fear. Watson and Rayner, 1920, and Harris, 2011 [Watch the part that checks it](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c_t9kij_hqo&t=357s) [The full record](https://underthebehavior.com/episodes/little-albert-experiment)
- Little Albert was a motherless orphan.: His mother was a wet nurse at the same hospital. Watson and Rayner, 1920, and Harris, 2011 [Watch the part that checks it](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c_t9kij_hqo&t=357s) [The full record](https://underthebehavior.com/episodes/little-albert-experiment)
- We know who Little Albert was.: Two teams named two boys, Douglas Merritte in 2009 and Albert Barger in 2014. Both cases are still argued. Beck, 2009. Powell, 2014. Fridlund, 2020 [Watch the part that checks it](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c_t9kij_hqo&t=466s) [The full record](https://underthebehavior.com/episodes/little-albert-experiment)
- Little Albert feared animals for the rest of his life.: Nobody knows. Albert Barger's niece described a dislike of dogs. His team could neither confirm nor deny a link. Powell and colleagues, 2014 [Watch the part that checks it](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c_t9kij_hqo&t=711s) [The full record](https://underthebehavior.com/episodes/little-albert-experiment)
- 38 people watched the murder and did nothing.: No evidence for 38 witnesses, or that witnesses saw the murder. Manning, Levine and Collins, 2007 [Watch the part that checks it](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s11l3z8RNpc&t=158s) [The full record](https://underthebehavior.com/episodes/kitty-genovese-bystander-effect)
- Nobody called the police.: Two people called the police. The New York Times, 2016 [Watch the part that checks it](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s11l3z8RNpc&t=519s) [The full record](https://underthebehavior.com/episodes/kitty-genovese-bystander-effect)
- Nobody came to help her.: Sophie Farrar ran downstairs, found her alive in the hallway and held her until help came. Trial record, 1964, and Skoller, 2004 [Watch the part that checks it](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s11l3z8RNpc&t=115s) [The full record](https://underthebehavior.com/episodes/kitty-genovese-bystander-effect)
- The Kitty Genovese case proved that people do not help.: The case prompted the research. A 2007 review of the trial record found no evidence for 38 witnesses. Manning, Levine and Collins, 2007 [Watch the part that checks it](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s11l3z8RNpc&t=158s) [The full record](https://underthebehavior.com/studies/bystander-effect)
- When others are around, nobody helps.: In 9 of every 10 filmed public conflicts, at least one bystander did something to help. Philpot and colleagues, 2020 [Watch the part that checks it](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s11l3z8RNpc&t=606s) [The full record](https://underthebehavior.com/studies/bystander-effect)
- More people always means less help.: On average, yes, in lab studies. But the effect is weaker when the danger is clear. Fischer and colleagues, 2011 [Watch the part that checks it](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s11l3z8RNpc&t=387s) [The full record](https://underthebehavior.com/studies/bystander-effect)

## Myths in depth
- [Is dark psychology real? Six claims, checked against the studies](https://underthebehavior.com/myths/dark-psychology)

## Questions

### Where do the rows come from?

Each row comes from the record table of one of our episode or study pages, with the source that backs it and a link to the part of the video that shows it.

### What is an example of a psychology myth?

The 38 witnesses. A 1964 story said 38 neighbors watched Kitty Genovese's murder and did nothing. In 2016, The New York Times wrote that two people called the police.

### Is the bystander effect a myth?

In lab studies it is real on average, and weaker when the danger is clear. In 219 filmed street conflicts, at least one bystander helped in 9 of every 10.

## Sources (4)
1. Gansberg, M. (1964, March 27). 37 Who Saw Murder Didn't Call the Police. The New York Times, p. 1. [nytimes.com archive](https://www.nytimes.com/1964/03/27/archives/37-who-saw-murder-didnt-call-the-police-apathy-at-stabbing-of.html)
2. McFadden, R. D. (2016, April 4). Winston Moseley, 81, Killer of Kitty Genovese, Dies in Prison. The New York Times. [nytimes.com](https://www.nytimes.com/2016/04/05/nyregion/winston-moseley-81-killer-of-kitty-genovese-dies-in-prison.html)
3. Fischer, P., et al. (2011). The bystander-effect: A meta-analytic review on bystander intervention in dangerous and non-dangerous emergencies. Psychological Bulletin, 137(4), 517 to 537. [doi.org/10.1037/a0023304](https://doi.org/10.1037/a0023304)
4. Philpot, R., Liebst, L. S., Levine, M., Bernasco, W., and Lindegaard, M. R. (2020). Would I be helped? Cross-national CCTV footage shows that intervention is the norm in public conflicts. American Psychologist, 75(1), 66 to 75. [doi.org/10.1037/amp0000469](https://doi.org/10.1037/amp0000469)

Updated October 20, 2026