Would you help a lost child? Shocking social experiment shows only SEVEN adults stopped to help a six-year-old boy standing alone at a busy shopping mall in 45 minutes
- Footage shows a six-year-old Australian boy standing alone at a busy mall
- But only seven adults stopped to help him after they noticed he was lost
- He was part of a social experiment to see how long it takes for bystanders to help
Standing alone in the middle of a bustling shopping mall, six-year-old Aiden looks visibly lost.
But only seven adults stopped to help the Australian boy in 45 minutes after they noticed he was by himself without a parent in sight.
The little boy, whose mother and father were sitting just metres away, was part of a social experiment to see just how long it takes for bystanders to rush to his aid.
Just six women and one man stopped to help - as disturbing footage shows hundreds of oblivious people walking past the lost boy.
Standing alone in the middle of a bustling shopping mall, six-year-old Aiden looks visibly lost. He was part of a social experiment to see just how long it takes for bystanders to rush to his aid
'I was actually really concerned and shocked actually at how many people didn't,' Aiden's mother told the Today show.
The footage shows a young woman approaching Aiden, before asking him what his parents look like so she could help him find them.
One mother who was holding her daughter's hand asked Aiden where his parents were before she suggested taking him to the police station.
'No thanks,' Aiden responded, to which the mother said: 'Are you sure? Look I'm a mummy too, your mummy and daddy will be very worried about you.'
After learning Aiden was part of a social experiment, the mother said: 'If my child was lost, I'd hope that someone would help them.'
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The young boy was standing alone without a parent in sight for nearly one hour
Only seven adults - six women and one man - stopped to help the Australian boy in 45 minutes
The social experiment was conducted by Key Assets, a children's services agency providing support to foster carers, vulnerable kids and young people in care.
'I think we're so busy in our lives today that children are often not seen and they're not heard so it's everyone's responsibility to protect children,' Key Assets CEO Rob Ryan told the Today show.
Of the seven people who stopped during the social experiment, only one man approached little Aiden.
'Not a lot of men stop,' Mr Ryan said.
'So it's important that men, if they're worried about stopping for children or young people to help them, find somebody who's nearby and say "hey, do you want to come and help me with this young person?"'
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