CASPer Scenario For Discussion #37

[PrepMatch]

You are a member of your University swim team. Gina, another member, has formed a group chat with everyone on the team, except the captain, Taylor. Gina posts several negative sentiments about Taylor, including one that accuses Taylor of taking drugs to enhance their performance.​

1. You believe that Gina is bullying Taylor and that the accusations are baseless. How do you proceed?
2. Are you complicit if you don't say anything to either Gina or Taylor?
3. What are your limitations in the role of a bystander?

Discuss Below !!

This scenario is from PrepMatch.com, the free peer-to-peer CASPer preparation platform that allows you to practice hundreds of scenarios for free. PrepMatch is a non-profit partnered up with organizations such as the Student Doctor Network that aims to make the admission process more equitable.

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[JDHz]

This is my first try so bear with me.

1. Since I believe the accusations are baseless, I would confront Gina about her statements and ask if she knows these statements to be true or if they are based on conjecture. If she has no evidence to back up her claims , I would advise her to clarify in the group chat that she does not know for sure that her accusations are true. I would also ask Gina if there is a reason that Taylor is not in the group chat to begin with as there may be legitimate reasons for the exclusion such as Taylor not wanting to be included in team communication. Ultimately, I would proceed by engaging in a conversation with Gina.

2. While the issue is between Gina and Taylor, Gina has included myself and our teammates by creating a group chat with us and speaking negatively about Taylor without her knowledge. Bringing the issue up with Taylor may create more friction within the team and lead to factions being created within the team, however if she is unaware of Gina's feelings toward her the ostracization could become worse and negatively impact the team as well. Discussing it with Gina could provide insight on why there is an issue between her and Taylor and could provide an opportunity for mediation. However, Gina may feel defensive about confronting the issue and push her to continue her efforts against Taylor. With that said, allowing the situation to continue with no intervention would make me complicit as I am included in the situation.

3. As a bystander, I'm limited to only the knowledge of the interactions I have witnessed giving me a narrow view of the situation. That is why I would speak with Gina for context as previously mentioned and then proceed once I have more information.

 

[fluffycookie1231]

1. This is a very difficult situation. For one, I can see that Gina is bullying Taylor by excluding her and making negative sentiments and false accusation about Taylor. On the other hand, Gina is my swim team member and I do not know the whole story behind these actions. I would first like to pull Gina aside in private and in a nonjudgemental tone ask her why she is leaving out Taylor and being negative towards Taylore. I understand there are times where people will bully and lash out at others due to other issues going on in their life. I would like Gina to know that I support her if something is occurring in her life that does not even involve Taylor. hoWEVER, I would let Gina know she needs to stop mistreating Taylor. If Gina complies, then no issues and may suggest to apologize to Taylor. However, if Gina refuses to stop, I would let her know that I would have to report her to a supervisor. Negative behavior and bullying is never the answer to any situation and lead to great harm to Taylor’s emotional and even physical health.
2. This is difficult. I understand that, for one, I am not the one doing the action. However, standing by and letting Gina continue to bully Taylor or make false accusations allows Gina to continue bullying. With this bystander effect, I believe that, yes I am somewhat complicit in not saying anything and allowing such actions to continue to hurt Taylor. If I have the capability of stopping such action or atleast getting more information, I would.
3. My limitation as a bystander is that I may not understand both sides of the situation. By looking in on an event, i am seeing it from my perspective rather than the two sides perspective. As a result, this is why it si important to get both sides of the story.

(please ignore grammatical/spelling issues. I typed this within 5 minutes and CASPER does not allow these issues to affect scores)

 

[Fluidity of Movement]

You are a member of your University swim team. Gina, another member, has formed a group chat with everyone on the team, except the captain, Taylor. Gina posts several negative sentiments about Taylor, including one that accuses Taylor of taking drugs to enhance their performance.​

1. You believe that Gina is bullying Taylor and that the accusations are baseless. How do you proceed?
2. Are you complicit if you don't say anything to either Gina or Taylor?
3. What are your limitations in the role of a bystander?

Discuss Below !!

This scenario is from PrepMatch.com, the free peer-to-peer CASPer preparation platform that allows you to practice hundreds of scenarios for free. PrepMatch is a non-profit partnered up with organizations such as the Student Doctor Network that aims to make the admission process more equitable.

1. This is always a difficult situation, but a lot of times from my experience people just don't understand the full effect of what it is they are doing, or the repercussions if the other party ever found out (which they would). A certain amount of tact has to be used, because once you confront someone they will immediately become defensive and the chances of persuasion go down, depending on how close of a relationship you have with them. Perhaps something like "Hey, I can see you have been working very hard on your times lately. I can understand how you might feel you are being treated unfairly by others who may be cheating. But I just wanted you to know I think that perhaps Taylor might be going through some issues of their own, and probably could use a good friend right now. Maybe we could try working things out."

2. Not necessarily, but the decision to remain quiet should be a tactful one. If you feel that your intervention would only cause the situation to become worse, you should abstain. These types of situations can be very delicate, and they can also blow over easily as well. People sometimes get mad, vent, don't act accordingly, but then do come around eventually. I personally feel confident in this situation, but would not judge someone else who may not.

3. Everything. Without any real power or authority, trying to intervene and overstep your grounds is generally unhelpful. Unless I know for certain that I can be of some use, perhaps I find an opening somehow, just walking up to people and stating your opinion is generally not wise. Outside of extreme circumstances. Public shaming can have worse effects later on for the person who may be suffering from mental health issues. This isn't to say one should never stand up to injustice, but that one should be well-versed in speechcraft and not try to assert themselves where they would normally feel unqualified.


Time: 5:53


It is my impression that #3 was a more general abstract question not directly related to the swim team.

I also sped through the question and missed the part about thinking the accusations were baseless. oops. the response is probably still a good one though, because it's showing that I believe Gina which builds rapport, but by saying Taylor is the one who 'may be going through something and needs a friend right now' is actually perhaps a mirror up to Gina, but in a 100% obfuscated way.