Module #3: Research Ethics

Question 1

Describe the Milgram Experiment.

Answer 1

The Milgram experiment aimed to research how far people would go in obeying an order if it involved harming another person via electric shock. He found that ordinary people are more likely to follow orders given by an authority figure, even to the extent of harming an innocent human being.

Question 2

Describe the Tuskegee experiment.

Answer 2

During the Tuskegee experiment, participants were either latent syphilis patients or a part of a control group. They were told they were being treated, however they were only given placebos despite the recommendation of penicillin for syphilis. As a result many participants dies, experienced associated health issues, passed the disease on to their spouses and further them to their children.

Question 3

Describe the Stanford Prison Experiment

Answer 3

In the Stanford Prison Experiment, participants were randomly selected and given the role of either an inmate or a guard. They were placed in a basement that resembled a prison. Naturally, participants began to embody the roles they were placed in; where inmates experienced dehumanization via physical abuse from guards and guards asserted and abused their perceived power.