conformity to social roles: zimbardo Flashcards
How did Zimbardo select and assign participants?
Volunteer sampling
Emotionally stable after testing
Randomly assigned prisoner or guard
Arrested in homes and issued number and uniform
How did Zimbardo divide the roles of prisoner and guard?
Prisoners routines were regulated
Numbers used instead of names
Guards had uniform
How long did the study last?
Meant to last 14 days
Ended after 6
How did the guards behave?
Divide and rule tactics - play prisoners off against each other
Headcounts at night
Harassed prisoners
How did the prisoners behave?
Rebellion was put down Subdued Depressed Anxious Hunger strike
When did prisoners leave?
One released on first day
Two more on fourth day
What did Zimbardo conclude?
All conformed to social roles
Real prison rather than study
Power of situation to influence behaviour
Evaluation - control
Emotionally stable pps chosen
Randomly assigned to roles
Ruled out personality differences
Internal validity
Evaluation - lack of realism
Pps were play acting not conforming
Performance based on stereotypes
Guard based role on Cool Hand Luke
Evaluation - dispositional influences
Fromm - Zimbardo minimised personality favours
Only a third were brutal
One third were fair and another helped the prisoners
Conclusion overstated
Evaluation - lack of research support
BBC recreation of study
Prisoners took control and harassed guards
Social identity theory - prisoners actively identified as a group whereas guards didn’t
Need a shared social identity
Evaluation - ethical issues
Dual roles
Pp wanted to leave
Zimbardo is psychologist and superintendent
Responded as superintendent
