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| Quotes | Qu. Ref. No. | Implications of the quote | The source study | Comments/Interpretations |
| Discipline | Study type |
| Links to H. | Links to P. | Def./ Cha. Ir. | Supp. Ir. | Cont. Ir. | Soc. Sci. | Phys. Sci. | Bio. Sci. | Mod. | Emp. Test. | Conc. |
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| Here we want to apply this model to a simple evacuation process with people trying to escape from a large room. Such a situation can lead to a panic where individuals apparently act irrationally. | (1)
[18] | | • | | • | | | • | | • | | | Irrational behaviour is a symptom of panic |
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| They think that the transition between the “rational” normal behavior and the apparently “irrational” panicbehavior is controlled by a single parameter, the “nervousness”, which influences fluctuation strengths, desired speeds, and the tendency of herding. | (2)
[11] | • | • | | | | | • | | • | | | Herding is a sign of irrational behaviour |
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| We aspire to give answers to the following specific questions what is the impact between choosing the escape route based on familiarity as opposed to rationally following the fire exits. | (3)
[10] | | | • | | | | • | | • | | | Choosing familiar exits is a sign of irrational behaviour |
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| We do not want to imply that individuals would always behave irrational in emergency situations. It has been observed that, even in such situations individuals can behave highly self-controlled, coordinated, rational, and social | (4)
[103] | | | • | | • | | • | | • | | • | People can maintain rationality during crises |
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| Recent researches in social psychology about herding effect in emergency [o.c.] indicate that, escaping behaviors among individuals are rational actions instead of crowd panic and a series of phenomena including herding effect are the result of rational choices in behaviors for escaping agents. | (5)
[8] | • | • | | | • | | • | | • | | | People can maintain rationality during crises |
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| Most microscopic simulation models [o.c.] in the field of emergency evacuation up to now are generally based on the assumption that panic instead of rational actions induces herding effect. | (6)
[8] | • | • | | | | | • | | • | | | Herding is a sign of irrational behaviour |
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| Irrationality: Accounting for the idea that individuals in a crowd lose rational thought | (7)
[99] | | | • | • | | | • | | • | | | |
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(i) High herding causes a crowd of high rationality (especially in normal circumstances) to become more “vying” in behaviour.
(ii) The high-rationality crowd is shown to spend more evacuation time than a low-rationality crowd in emergency situations. | (8)
[36] | | • | • | | | | • | | • | | | Rationality is associated with evacuation efficiency |
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| Persons with high rationality deal with various situations according to their precise judgment, while persons of low rationality choose strategy at random. | (9)
[36] | | | • | | | | • | | • | | | Irrationality means deciding randomly |
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| Computer simulation results show that…(2) in an emergency situation, individual hyper-rationality among evacuees diminishes evacuation efficiency; (3) the imitation effect enhances cooperation among evacuees, yet reduces evacuation efficiency. | (10)
[37] | • | | • | | | | • | | • | | | (i) Rationality is associated with evacuation efficiency
(ii) Herding is detrimental to evacuation efficiency |
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| The underlying behavior could be called “irrational”, as all of these effects decrease the chances of survival compared to normal pedestrian behavior. | (11)
[103] | | | • | | | | • | | • | | • | Rationality is associated with evacuation efficiency |
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| For a low level of panic, a great number of individuals are still able to choose autonomously the best exit but, as soon as their stress level increases, more and more persons imitate other persons around them, discarding any rational behaviour. | (12)
[17] | • | • | • | • | | | • | | • | | | Herding is a sign of irrational behaviour |
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| Gabriel Tarde (1901) (cited in van Ginneken, 1992)…suggested that by mere proximity people become a crowd, and hence subject to uncritical imitation and hence irrational behaviour. | (13)
[132] | • | | • | • | | • | | | | | • | Herding is a sign of irrational behaviour |
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| Despite the evidence, a number of myths about disasters persist in public discourse, some of which suggest that collective behavior in emergencies is maladaptive, irrational, and even pathological. | (14)
[31] | | • | | • | • | • | | | | | • | Irrationality is not an accurate theory for evacuation behaviour |
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| The idea that the majority of people in such circumstances are acting ‘rationally’ at least in their own terms contrasts with the conventional escape model which assumes everyone is panicking | (15)
[15] | | • | | | • | • | | | | | • | Irrationality is not an accurate theory for evacuation behaviour |
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| Over several decades, studies specifically looking at panic behaviour in fires have consistently shown that non-adaptive and irrational behaviours are actually a rare occurrence | (16)
[30] | | • | • | | • | • | | | | | • | Irrationality is not an accurate theory for evacuation behaviour |
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| Although evacuees might be anxious, and frequently use the word ‘panic’ to describe their own or others’ reaction to events, they do not behave in an irrational or antisocial manner. | (17)
[30] | | • | | | • | • | | | | | • | Irrationality is not an accurate theory for evacuation behaviour |
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| One important impact of the rejection of the concept of panic is that management authorities should envision the building occupants as allies during a fire rather than a mass of irrational people who need to be controlled | (18)
[30] | | • | | | • | • | | | | | • | Irrationality theory has significant implications for crowd management |
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| However, many studies on human behaviour in fire and crowd disasters have showed that even under extremely critical conditions people do not panic but they behaved quite rationally helping each other | (19)
[50] | | • | | | • | | • | | | • | | People can maintain rationality during crises |
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| There are various definitions of ‘panic’, a distinguishing feature of all of them is the crowd’s supposed irrationality, which is linked to the ‘contagion’ of emotion. | (20)
[24] | | • | • | | | • | | | | | • | Irrational behaviour is a symptom of panic |
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| To judge a response as irrational requires a frame of reference, but the frame of reference is often unclear in a mass emergency. | (21)
[24] | | | | | | • | | | | | • | Measuring rationality requires a reference point |
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| Fleeing, fear, screaming or other responses to perceived danger may therefore be entirely reasonable [rational] given the limited information – and limited choices – available to people in the midst of an emergency | (22)
[24] | | | • | | • | • | | | | | • | What seems irrational act, may be individual’s best perceived course of action |
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| A leading example of supposed irrational crowd behaviour ‘panic’, which is generally conceptualised as irrational flight in which fearful people may end up hurting or killing themselves and others. | (23)
[133] | | • | • | | | • | | | | | • | |
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| Myth of irrationality: crowds may cause people to behave irrationally or to engage in panic irrational flight. | (24)
[133] | | • | • | | • | • | | | | | • | Irrational behaviour is a symptom of panic |
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| Renzetti and Curran…claim that while people may copy one another or look to others for indications of how to behave, this does not mean that they lose their rationality when in a crowd or similar type of collectivity. | (25)
[133] | • | | | | • | • | | | | | • | Irrationality theory has significant implications for crowd management |
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(i) Couch (o.c.) argued that some crowds may appear irrational in that they do not support the ideas “supported by the established institutions of the day.”
(ii) Couch’s analytic approach suggests that the concept of irrationality and its counterpart, rationality, may have “limited applicability for sociological analysis”. | (26)
[133] | | | • | | • | • | | | | | • | Irrationality theory has significant implications for crowd management |
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| In buildings people choose the route they know or when not familiar with the building their exit route is the way they entered the building. Although it might not be the most optimal route, this does not imply irrationality or randomness. …[This] can be considered a risk assessment. | (27)
[134] | | | • | | • | • | | | | | • | What seems irrational act, may be individual’s best perceived course of action |
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| The notion of irrationality is often used when people are not behaving in what is seen as the most effective way to achieve a goal, like fleeing out of a building while not following the emergency exits. However, the effectiveness of behaviour is compared to an ideal way of acting. It thus depends on whoever defines the effective or ideal way how and when the label “irrational” is used | (28)
[134] | | | • | | • | • | | | | | • | (i) Rationality is associated with evacuation efficiency
(ii) Measuring rationality requires a reference point |
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| The fact is that people in crowds do not behave irrationally, i.e. do not encounter a cognitive shut-down. Actually, the available evidence supports the opposite: individuals behave rationally given the information they have and they pursue goals effectively | (29)
[134] | | | | | • | • | | | | | • | (i) Irrationality theory has significant implications for crowd management
(ii) Measuring rationality requires a reference point |
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| Panic has been associated with individualistic responses and characterised by “self-preservation at all costs, by ‘irrational’ animalistic behaviour involving the breakdown of group ties (i.e. ‘non-social’ behaviour: ignoring of group members, or ‘antisocial’ behaviour: kicking, trampling)’” [o.c.]…this is an inaccurate generalisation; however, this type of description has implications for the ways in which motivation to escape is explained. | (30)
[12] | | | • | | • | • | | | | | • | Irrationality theory has significant implications for crowd management |
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| Mintz suggested that ineffectual escape in an evacuating crowd is due to individual calculation of costs and benefits, rather than to a contagious outburst of mass irrationality, as assumed by the early mass panic models. | (31)
[113] | | | | | • | • | | | | | • | (i) What seems irrational act, may be individual’s best perceived course of action
(ii) Irrational behaviour is a symptom of panic |
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| The several sociological and social psychological theories of collective behavior which consider panic… they make very different assumptions about the process producing the competition, variously attributing it to irrational behavior produced by fear and social contagion | (32)
[115] | | • | | | | • | | | | • | • | Irrational behaviour is a symptom of panic |
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| The individual is no less rational or moral in the panic than in any other situation. He is always in pursuit of his own interests and acts on the basis of his current estimates of where these lie. | (33)
[33] | | • | | | • | • | | | | • | • | What seems irrational act, may be individual’s best perceived course of action |
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| The concept of panic is vague and deciding what is rational and people think is rational is tricky business | (34)
[135] | | • | | | • | • | | | | • | • | Irrationality lacks a clear definition |
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| The concept of mass panic is also still influential in crowd modelling (o.c.), where its irrationalist assumptions have implications for the design of public spaces and evacuation procedures. | (35)
[27] | | • | | | | • | | | | • | • | Irrationality theory has significant implications for crowd management |
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(i) Popular representations of crowd behaviour in disasters are often characterised by irrationalist discourses, in particular ‘mass panic’ despite their rejection by current scientific research
(ii) It is concluded that the term ‘panic’ is so deeply embedded in popular discourse that people may use it even when they have reason to reject its irrationalist implications. | (36)
[28] | | • | | | • | • | | | | • | • | Irrationality is not an accurate theory for evacuation behaviour |
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| One classical way of defining panic is to refer to an excessive and groundless feeling of fear which make people take an irrational and inappropriate course of action in an attempt to secure themselves. | (37)
[119] | | • | • | | | • | | | | | • | (i) Irrational behaviour is a symptom of panic
(ii) Rationality is associated with evacuation efficiency |
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| There are two possible ways that irrationality may be involved. First, definitions of panic often include exaggerated beliefs about threat and overreactions and so on. Second is the idea that the act of escape may be self-defeating. | (38)
[119] | | • | • | | | • | | | | | • | (i) Irrational behaviour is a symptom of panic
(ii) Rationality is associated with evacuation efficiency |
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| A common assumption regarding individual behavior in emergency is that…they panic and react in an antisocial and/or irrational manner: they show self-preserving behavior and little or no concern for their neighbors… a great deal of solidarity and pro-social behavior has been reported in such situations. | (39)
[119] | | • | • | | • | • | | | | | • | Irrationality is not an accurate theory for evacuation behaviour |
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| In the accounts, rather than the irrational panic or small group behaviour that has been suggested in previous simulations of crowd behaviour, survivors often described people forming orderly queues, acting calmly despite the emergency situation | (40)
[136] | | • | • | | • | • | | | | • | • | Irrationality is not an accurate theory for evacuation behaviour |
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| The judgment of panic is usually made retrospectively, especially if serious loss of life occurred. But what may be considered inappropriate, excessive, irrational or highly intense by others may not be so judged by participants themselves. | (41)
[123] | | • | | | • | • | | | | | • | What seems irrational act, may be individual’s best perceived course of action |
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| Early accounts of ‘mass panic’ similarly suggested that collective behaviour was irrational because it was governed by primitive bio-psychological processes. | (42)
[132] | | • | • | | | • | | | | | • | Irrational behaviour is a symptom of panic |
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| The most well-documented of these is “mass panic.” This refers to an exaggerated or irrational fear that is said to spread through “contagion,” leading to escape behaviors that are over-hasty, unthinking, and unrestrained by social rules. | (43)
[31] | • | • | • | | | • | | | | | • | Irrational behaviour is a symptom of panic |
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| In its more limited and correct usage, panic denotes irrational behavior in which judgment and consideration of reality factors are so poor that self-destructive activity may occur. | (44)
[29] | | • | • | • | | • | | | | | • | (i) Irrational behaviour is a symptom of panic
(ii) Rationality is associated with evacuation efficiency |
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| In fact, ‘panic’ in the form of irrational behaviour is rare during fires and researchers have long ago rejected this concept to explain human behaviour in fire. | (45)
[126] | | • | | | • | • | | | | | • | Irrationality is not an accurate theory for evacuation behaviour |
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| Incorrect decision-making due to incomplete information or insufficient resources is not the same as irrational decision-making and as such is not sufficient to categorise someone as panicking | (46)
[34] | | • | | | • | • | | | | | • | What seems irrational act, may be individual’s best perceived course of action |
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| Sime (1980) has fully explained the arguments to consider the concept of ‘panic’ as a poor and ineffective explanation of human behaviour in fire. In fact, ‘panic’, in the form of irrational behaviour, is rare in a majority of fires. | (47)
[26] | | • | | | • | • | | | | | • | Irrationality is not an accurate theory for evacuation behaviour |
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(i) It is possible to argue that the choice to herd can be result of a rational decision (i.e. a choice “procedurally reasonable in light of the available knowledge and means of computation”)
(ii) Herding behaviour can be the result of a rational decision-making process instead of an “irrational- panic” decision | (48)
[50] | • | • | | | | | • | | | • | | What seems irrational act, may be individual’s best perceived course of action |
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