Social Psychology L7 Flashcards
Who conducted the SPE and when did they conduct it?
Standford psychology professor Philip Zimbardo in the early 70s
Where was the SPE constructed?
The basement of the psychology building
What was the goal of the SPE?
To examine how social roles affect people’s behavior
Describe the participants of the SPE
24 male college students, described as “mature, emotionally stable, normal and intelligent”. Recruited via college newspaper advertisement.
How were participants assigned roles?
By drawing straws.
How did the SPE begin?
Prisoners were arrested by the Palo Alto Police.
What happened to prisoners when they were first bought to the prison?
They were fingerprinted, blind folded, stripped naked, deloused, and taken to a detentional cell?
Describe the cells of the SPE?
6 by 9 feet. Each cell holds 3 prisoners.
Guards wore ____ _____ , _____ _____and carried a _____ and ______. They were referred to as __ _______ _______.
Khaki uniforms Reflective sunglasses Whistle Night stick Mr Correctional Officer
Who was the prison superindendent and assistant warden?
Superindentent was Zimbardo himself
Assistant warden was a student named Jaffe.
Prisoners were forced to wear….
Chains around the ankle
Numbers
Sack like uniforms
What were the three phases of the SPE?
- Settling in phase
- Revolution phase
- Guards became galvanized
What happened in the ‘settling in’ phase of the SPE?
Guards and prisoners not fully accustomed to role. Guards appeared awkward and uncomfortable with their role
Prisoners did not take their position seriously (laughed and made jokes)
What happened in the ‘revolution’ phase of the SPE?
Prisoners protested and barricaded themselves in their cells, refusing to follow orders.
Guards silenced rebellion by introducing solitary confinement for bad behavior and privileges (ie a soft bed and special food) for good behavior. Began to take their role more seriously
What is the central implication of the SPE?
That ordinary people can be transformed by their immediate context (roles) to perform brutal acts.
What is the counterargument to Zimbardo’s assertion that brutality was a natural consequence of becoming a guard?
He gave the guards a script of terror at the guard orientation. Encouraging guards to administer push ups and punishment. “We can create frustration in them. We can take away their individuality.” Zimbardo also let everything that happened happen, and never checked any of the guards behavior. He wanted prisoners to feel totally powerless.
i.e it was Zimbardo’s behaviour as a leader that entices the guards to behave the way they did
David Jaffe …
Drafted 11 of the 17 guidelines used by the guards.
Were the SPE participants actually normal people?
According to Carnahan and Macfarland (2007), the type of people who volunteer to be in an experiment like the SPE are:
- authoritarian
- machievellian
- narcissistic
- social dominant
- less empathetic and altruistic
How many guards were sadistic?
A third became sadistic
A third were kind
A third were ‘tough but fair
What sort of instruction did Jaffe supply to the guards?
He accosted the ones who he felt weren’t being mean enough, telling them that for the purpose of the research they had to get into it more.
What did Lovibond et al (1979) find?
That the guards only became sadistic and cruel if they were initially instructed to. When they were instructed to be democratic and benign, then the prison wasn’t nearly as toxic.
What did Reicher and Haslam (2006) find?
They didn’t take any part in the prison and didn’t offer any guidance. Found that guards were very disorganized and bored. It was the prisoners who developed a sense of identity and rebelled against the guards. The guards were very tame and in the end let the prisoners run the experiment.
What is the general consensus on the SPE?
shared identity
The prisoners can experience a shared sense of identity which allows them to resist oppression rather than succumb to it.
The guards shared identity can lead to brutality only if brutality is promoted by a tyrannical leader.
Why did the SPE go so nasty?
Promoted an us vs them mentality
Promoted brutality in guards
What is the interaction between person and context?
Contexts transform individuals. Individuals transform contexts. Depending on how the individuals do this, tyranny may or may not ensure.
How many days till it was stopped?
6
What happened in the third phase?
-Guards called for reinforcements
-Broke into the barricaded cell, stripped the prisoners naked and forced the ring leader into the hole
-They began to harass and intimidate the prisoners
-Tried to split the prisoners via divide and rule
those not in the rebellion were given special privileges
-Over the next 4 days the guards became increasingly brutal – roll calls lasted hours
-The prisoners were taunted, humiliated, made to do push ups, clean toilets with their bare hands and play homoerotic games
