Conformity to social roles

Question 1

What are strengths of SPE?

Answer 1

• Zimbardo and colleagues had control over variables
  > selected emotionally stable participants
  > randomly assigned groups (rule out individual personality differences)
• Guards and prisoners acting different in randomly assigned roles = behavior due to situation pressure
• control increased internal validity
• confidence in concluding the influence of roles on behavior
• Zimbardo argued that prison was very real to participants
  > quantitative data found that 90% of conservation about prison life

Question 2

What psychologists critique SPE?

Answer 2

Banuazizi and Mohavedi
Fromm
BBC

Question 3

What did Banuazizi and Mohavedi say?

Answer 3

Participants were playacting, not genuine conformity
- performances were based on stereotypes of how prisoners and guards were supposed to act
- One guard committed to basing his role on a brutal character from ‘cool hand luke’
- explains why prisoners noted as they thought that’s what real prisoners did

Question 4

What did Fromm say?

Answer 4

• accused Zimbardo of exaggerating the power of the situation
  > minimized the role of personality factors
• Only 1/3 of the guards acted in a brutal manner
• 1/3 were keen on applying rules fairly
• rest actively tried to help prisoners by offering cigs or reinstating privileges
• suggest Zimbardo conclusion may be over stated
• differences in guards behavior = able to exercise right and wrong choices despite situation pressure

Question 5

What did BBC do?

Answer 5

• different findings, prisoners took control and subjected the guards harassment and disobedience
• social identity theory, guards failed to develop a shared social identity
• prisoners actively identified as mentors of a social group, refusal to accept limits of assigned prisoner roles

Question 6

What are ethical issues for SPE?

Answer 6

• one participant wanted to leave, went to speak to Zimbardo, conversation based on the basis that he was a prisoner, not a participant