SOCIAL INFLUENCE - Zimbardo (1974) Stanford Prison Conformity Experiment

Question 1

What was the aim of the Stanford Prison Experiemnt?

Answer 1

To investigate how readily people would conform to social roles when introduced to a role-playing exercise.

Question 2

What did Philip Zimbardo do in preparation for the SPE?

Answer 2

• The basement of the Stanford University psychology building was converted into a mock prison
• Adverts were put up asking for volunteers to participate in a study of the psychological effects of prison life
• More than 70 applicants responded to the advertisement and were given psychological tests to eliminate candidates with psychological problems or a history of crime or drug abuse
• 24 male college volunteers ended up making the cut
• Experiment was to run for 2 weeks.

Question 3

Where was the SPE to take place?

Answer 3

The basement of the Stanford University psychology building

Question 4

How many volunteers were part of the SPE?

Answer 4

24 male college volunteers

Question 5

How long was the SPE supposed to run for?

Answer 5

2 weeks

Question 6

How did Zimbardo carry out the Stanford Prison Experiment?

Answer 6

• Participants were randomly assigned the role of prisoner or guard (10 prisoners and 11 guards)
• Prisoners were arrested unexpectedly by real police and were taken to the police station where they were strip searched and processed
• They were blindfolded and were driven to the mock prison
• Prisoners had some rights (eg. 3 meals a day, 3 toilet trips a day and visiting hours) and were heavily regulated by the guards

Question 7

How many guards and how many prisoners were in the SPE?

Answer 7

10 prisoners 11 guards

Question 8

How were prisoner participants prepped for the SPE?

Answer 8

• Stripped naked
• Had all personal possessions removed
• Only given a smock, tight nylon cap and a locked chain around one ankle to wear
• Referred to only by number (kept the prisoners anonymous)

Question 9

How were guard participants prepped for the SPE?

Answer 9

• Dressed in identical khaki uniforms
• Given a night sticks and a whistle to carry around their neck
• Given special sunglasses so eye contact with prisoners was not possible
• Instructed to do whatever was necessary to maintain law and order in the prison (no physical violence)

Question 10

What was Zimbardo’s role in the SPE?

Answer 10

Zimbardo stood as superintendent of the prison

Question 11

What were the outcomes of the SPE?

Answer 11

• Both the prisoners and guards quickly identified with their assigned social roles
• Prisoners had tried to rebel at one point but this was quickly dissolved by the guards
• Guards became increasingly abusive towards the prisoners (eg. forcing them to do press ups, pushed them into urinals and leaving them in pitch dark cupboards for hours)
• 5 prisoners were released from the experiment early because of the physical and mental torment
• Experiment was terminated on day 6 because of concerns about psychological health (was meant to last 2 weeks)

Question 12

What conclusions were made about the SPE?

Answer 12

• People quickly conform to social roles, even when the role goes against moral principles
• Situational factors were largely responsible for the behaviour of the participants given they never demonstrated the behaviour in the experiment previously.

Question 13

What are the weaknesses of the SPE?

Answer 13

• The study was extremely unethical as prisoners were subjected to psychological harm - some even had to be released early due to crying, rage, and acute anxiety.
• Zimbardo was playing a dual role (prison warden AND the researcher). The validity of the findings can be questioned because he became very involved in his role and lost his objectivity. He had to be told by a colleague to end the study because of the participants’ distress.
• The sample was unrepresentative as all the participants were white, young and middle class males that study at Stanford. Therefore the results cannot be generalised to women or other cultures.