Lecture 6 - Zimbardo Flashcards
Where was Philip Zimbardo born, and when?
Born in 1933 in the Bronx, New York City.
Which two influential psychologists did Zimbardo go to high school with?
Stanley Milgram.
What degree did Zimbardo earn, and from where?
BA in Psychology, Sociology, and Anthropology from Brooklyn College in 1954.
What was Zimbardo’s role in the American Psychological Association (APA)?
He served as the President of the APA in 2003.
When did Philip Zimbardo pass away?
October 14, 2024.
What was Zimbardo’s goal in extending the social influence paradigm?
To conduct a more dynamic study than Asch or Milgram’s, with more participants, more interaction, and a longer duration.
What theory did Zimbardo challenge with his Stanford Prison Experiment?
The “Bad Apple” hypothesis, which suggested that only certain individuals (with personality traits like authoritarianism) acted tyrannically, rather than situational factors.
What social context prompted Zimbardo’s Stanford Prison Experiment?
Public concern over the conditions in US prisons, including reports of mass beatings, abuse by guards, and high-profile prison riots.
How were participants recruited for the Stanford Prison Experiment?
A newspaper ad for a study on the effects of prison life, with $15 per day reimbursement for male student volunteers.
What screening criteria were used for selecting participants in the SPE?
Psychological health, no history of criminal behavior or drug abuse.
What were the roles assigned to the participants?
Participants were randomly assigned the roles of either Prisoners or Guards.
How were the “Prisoners” treated before the experiment began?
They were “arrested” at home, charged, and taken to a real police station before being transferred to the “Stanford Prison.”
Where was the experiment conducted?
In the basement of a Stanford University building, converted into a mock prison.
What occurred on Day 1 of the experiment?
Prisoners were stripped and humiliated, assigned uniforms and identification numbers, while guards wore uniforms and sunglasses, creating authority.
What significant event happened on Day 2?
Some prisoners rebelled, barricading themselves in cells, leading to harassment and solitary confinement for the “ringleaders.”
What happened on Day 3 of the SPE?
The first participant was released due to emotional distress, and a mass escape plot was foiled by Zimbardo.
What took place on Day 6 that led to the experiment’s termination?
Parents sent a lawyer, and the increasing distress of the participants led Zimbardo to stop the experiment.
What was the key observation regarding the guards’ behavior?
Guards exhibited aggression as a “natural” consequence of adopting their roles, with no prior training in cruelty.
What concept did Zimbardo emphasize to explain the behavior of the guards?
The “Bad Barrel” hypothesis (situational determinism), where the environment and power dynamics corrupted normal individuals.
What concept of moral decay was illustrated by the experiment?
“Deindividuation,” where participants lost their moral compass due to anonymity and uniformity, leading to inhumane behavior.
What ethical issue was raised regarding the participants’ ability to withdraw from the study?
Participants were not adequately informed about their right to withdraw, leading to distressing experiences.
How did Zimbardo justify the emotional distress caused to participants?
He shifted the blame to the participants, suggesting that they were mentally weak or unable to handle the situation.
What concerns arose about Zimbardo’s role in the study?
Zimbardo was both the lead researcher and the prison superintendent, which may have led to a conflict of interest and lack of objectivity in stopping the experiment.
What is one of the major criticisms regarding the empirical quality of the study?
The study was never published in a peer-reviewed journal, limiting the ability to scrutinize the findings.
How did Zimbardo’s briefing for guards influence their behavior?
The “Stanford orientation” brief made guards expect hostility and oppressive behavior, leading them to adopt cruel behaviors.
What alternative explanation was proposed by Haslam, Reicher, and Van Bavel for the guards’ behavior?
They suggested that the guards’ cruelty was not merely due to role conformity but also identity leadership, where they believed their actions were necessary for a noble cause.
What impact did the Stanford Prison Experiment have on public consciousness?
The experiment became highly influential, with movies and academic courses using it to discuss authority, obedience, and leadership.
What connection was drawn between the SPE and the Abu Ghraib prison scandal?
Zimbardo’s book, The Lucifer Effect, examined how ordinary people in positions of power can commit atrocities, drawing parallels to the events at Abu Ghraib.
What was one of the major criticisms of prison systems after the experiment?
Despite the findings of the SPE, prison conditions in the US worsened, becoming even more punitive and destructive.
What did the BBC Prison Study test in relation to tyranny and resistance?
It explored when people conform to oppressive groups and when they act as a group to challenge oppression.
How did the BBC study differ from Zimbardo’s experiment?
The BBC study emphasized social identity rather than blind role conformity, and the guards did not uniformly become oppressive; some resisted.
What did Haslam and Reicher’s interpretation of the BBC study suggest about resistance?
They found that when group boundaries were permeable and social identity was strengthened, prisoners were more likely to resist oppressive authority.
What was Zimbardo’s criticism of the BBC Prison Experiment?
He argued that the BBC study was more like reality TV, with planned interventions and competitions between guards and prisoners, which made it less scientific.
How does the BBC Prison Study relate to dynamic interactionism?
It supported the idea that “bad apples” (individuals) can create “bad barrels” (oppressive systems), but it also highlighted the role of group dynamics in both resistance and tyranny.
