The psychology of ‘Could you please move?’
You would be justified in wondering how things got to the point that someone had to sit on the kid’s legs. In reality, we know at least three separate people asked him to shift before he was forced to sit on him.
That should not be dismissed lightly. Psychologists have conducted studies that demonstrate clearly that requesting favors from strangers makes us uncomfortable. This is doubly true for the subway in New York City, where individuals are taught to avoid eye contact like the plague.