Conformity To Social Roles

Question 1

Procedure zimbardo

Answer 1

Procedure - Zimbardo (1973) wanted to investigate whether conformity to
social roles would alter a person’s behaviour. A simulated prison was created in
the basement of the Stanford University Psychology department. 24
emotionally and psychologically stable young men were recruited and randomly
assigned to the role of prisoner or guard. The prisoners were randomly arrested from their home by the real police, taken to a police station and were fingerprinted, deloused snd given a orange jumpsuit/ uniform with only a number in it. The guards had complete control over
the prisoners who were confined to their cells around the clock except for
meals, toilet privileges, head counts and work. They also had military uniforms, reflective sunglssses and batons. The guards were told to maintain
order using any means necessary, except for physical violence.

Question 2

Findings zimabrdo!

Answer 2

Findings - On the second day the prisoners tried to rebel, they ripped off their
prison numbers and barricaded themselves in their cell. The guards sprayed
them with carbon dioxide, stripped them naked, took their beds away and
forced the ringleaders into solitary confinement. Over the next few days the
guards became increasingly cruel and aggressive, creating a brutal atmosphere.
Prisoners became passive and depressed as the guards used verbal abuse,
forced them to do repeated press ups, pushed them into urinals and left them in
a pitch black cupboard for hours. The guards became so aggressive that the
study had to be ended after only six days (it was meant to last two weeks),
because of concerns about the psychological health of the prisoners, who were
showing signs of severe distress.

Question 3

Evaluation zimbardo

Answer 3

• The study was highly unethical as prisoners were subjected to psychological
  harm. Five prisoners had to be released early because of their extreme
  reactions, such as crying, rage and acute anxiety. However, Zimbardo did not
  expect the guards to behave in the way they did so this harm could not have
  been anticipated.
• Zimbardo took on the role of prison warden, became very involved in the
  experiment and lost his objectivity. He had to be told by a colleague to end the
  experiment because of concerns over the distress of the prisoners. This means
  the validity of the findings can be questioned.
• The sample was unrepresentative as all the participants were white (with one
  exception), young, middle class, male students from Stanford University.
  Therefore, the results cannot be generalised to women (gender bias) or other
  cultures (cultural bias).
• The guards in Zimbardo’s experiment may have behaved the way they did due
  to demand characteristics; some of the participants reported afterwards that
  they thought that the experimenters wanted them to behave aggressively, and
  this is why they behaved the way they did. This means the study is not valid.
• Some of the guards did not conform to the role given to them and were very
  reluctant to become involved in cruelty towards the prisoners, whereas other
  guards were very abusive. This seems to suggest that individual differences are
  important in determining the extent to which participants will conform to social
  roles.