Police have lamented a “sad state of affairs” after approximately 100 people failed to intervene when a man was bashed right in front of them.

The male victim was reportedly attacked after accidentally bumping into another man in a car park outside the Vale Hotel in the Melbourne suburb of Mulgrave just after midnight on July 25.

While numerous witnesses looked on, a group of five repeatedly hit the victim. No one intervened. No one called emergency services.

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It was only when a passing motorist noticed the victim, who had suffered a large puncture wound to the back of his head, that an ambulance was called.

The incident angered police, prompting them to suggest there was a wider problem with society. But psychological experts and those with experience in similar situations have sympathised with the witnesses.

AFL legend Ron Barassi, who famously defended a woman being assaulted on the street in 2009, told The New Daily he can understand the crowd’s reluctance.

Mr Barassi still suffers memory loss — a side effect of being kicked in the head by the woman’s attacker.

“I thought what I saw was awful so I acted out of instinct,” Mr Barassi said.

“Perhaps if I’d had time to think, and if I was a father of young children, I would have made another decision.”

Football legend Ron Barassi intervened during a street assault in 2009. Photo: Getty

The cause of our reluctance

Witnesses may simply be too afraid to come to assistance, said University of Sydney’s Professor Kevin Dunn, who has studied bystander attitudes.

“Firstly, people may be reluctant to act if they think it will make them a target for violence,” Professor Dunn said.

“People may lack awareness that they could actually do something, or they may be worried it will affect their in-group status.”

Professor Dunn said research showed a larger group of witnesses is less likely to step in, as they see everyone just standing around and act as part of a herd mentality.

It’s called the ‘bystander effect’, and it occurs when a number of witnesses feel that their responsibility is shared, and thus decreased.

“The smaller the number of witnesses, the more likely someone will do something.”

‘He spun around and punched me’

Some bystanders, like Ben, 27 from Sydney, do leap to the defence of someone in need.

In 2007, Ben witnessed a man attempting to rob a convenience store in Sydney’s busy Taylor Square while hurling racial abuse at the cashier.

He told the attacker to leave.

“I was the only one in there, but for some reason I didn’t consider just running out into the busy street,” Ben told The New Daily.

However, his attempt to do the right thing quickly made him the victim.

“The guy immediately spun around and punched me in the face.”

Like the recent incident, Ben was also let down by those around him. Two on-duty nightclub bouncers watched as he was punched repeatedly without stepping in.

“They were watching it as a spectacle. I don’t know if they just decided it wasn’t their fight.”

Sometimes the Samaritan can become the victim. Photo: Shutterstock

‘Sometimes you must take a stand’

Greater Shepparton crime prevention officer Glenn Gibson told The New Daily that witnesses should intervene where safe to do so.

“We tell people in armed robbery situations to co-operate, because money is not worth a life,” Officer Gibson said.

“You need to make a risk assessment and ask yourself if you are just going to make things worse.

“But when it comes to racism and bullying, if you simply stand by you may just as bad as the person perpetrating.”