zimbardo Flashcards
evaluation
Point - A strength of the Stanford Prison Experiment is that Zimbardo and his colleagues had some control over variables. Evidence - Emotionally stable individuals were chosen and randomly assigned to the roles of guard and prisoner. Explanation - This was one way in which the researchers tried to rule out individual personality differences as an explanation of the findings. Impact - Having such control over variables increases the internal validity of the study. validity- strength
evaluation point 2
Point - A major ethical issue arose because of Zimbardo’s dual roles in the study. Evidence - On one occasion a participant who wanted to leave the experiment spoke to Zimbardo when he was in his role as superintendent. Explanation - This led to Zimbardo responding to the participant as a superintendent worried about the running of his prison, rather than as a researcher with responsibilities towards his participants. Impact - The participant had to stay in the study for longer than they wanted, putting them at risk of psychological harm and it prevented them the right to withdraw. Ethics – limitation
social roles
Social roles are the parts people play as members of various social groups. Everyday examples include parent, child, student, passenger and so on. These are accompanied by expectations that we and others have of what is appropriate behaviour in each role, for example caring, obedient, industrious etc. There is considerable pressure to conform to the expectations of a social role.
Conforming to a social role is called identification. A person changes their public behaviour and private beliefs, but only while they are in a particular social role.
People learn how to behave in certain situations by observing the social roles of others and conforming to this behaviour. Therefore, a new teacher will quickly adopt the behaviour and beliefs of other teachers in their school, as they conform to this social role.
summary
.The experiment was conducted in 1971 by psychologist Philip Zimbardo to examine situational forces versus dispositions in human behavior.
.24 young, healthy, psychologically normal men were randomly assigned to be “prisoners” or “guards” in a simulated prison environment.
.The experiment had to be terminated after only 6 days due to the extreme, pathological behavior emerging in both groups. The situational forces overwhelmed the dispositions of the participants.
.Pacifist young men assigned as guards began behaving sadistically, inflicting humiliation and suffering on the prisoners. Prisoners became blindly obedient and allowed themselves to be dehumanized.
.The principal investigator, Zimbardo, was also transformed into a rigid authority figure as the Prison Superintendent.
.The experiment demonstrated the power of situations to alter human behavior dramatically. Even good, normal people can do evil things when situational forces push them in that direction.
aim
Zimbardo and his colleagues (1973) were interested in finding out whether the brutality reported among guards in American prisons was due to the sadistic personalities of the guards (i.e., dispositional) or had more to do with the prison environment (i.e., situational).Zimbardo predicted the situation made people act the way they do rather than their disposition (personality).
procedure
75 applicants who answered the ad were given diagnostic interviews and personality tests to eliminate candidates with psychological problems, medical disabilities, or a history of crime or drug abuse.
24 men judged to be the most physically & mentally stable, the most mature, & the least involved in antisocial behaviors were chosen to participate.
The participants did not know each other prior to the study and were paid $15 per day to take part in the experiment.
Participants were randomly assigned to either the role of prisoner or guard in a simulated prison environment. There were two reserves, and one dropped out, finally leaving ten prisoners and 11 guards.Prisoners were treated like every other criminal, being arrested at their own homes, without warning, and taken to the local police station. They were fingerprinted, photographed and ‘booked.’
Then they were blindfolded and driven to the psychology department of Stanford University, where Zimbardo had had the basement set out as a prison, with barred doors and windows, bare walls and small cells. Here the deindividuation process began.
When the prisoners arrived at the prison they were stripped naked, deloused, had all their personal possessions removed and locked away, and were given prison clothes and bedding. They were issued a uniform, and referred to by their number only.Their clothes comprised a smock with their number written on it, but no underclothes. They also had a tight nylon cap to cover their hair, and a locked chain around one ankle.
All guards were dressed in identical uniforms of khaki, and they carried a whistle around their neck and a billy club borrowed from the police. Guards also wore special sunglasses, to make eye contact with prisoners impossible.
Three guards worked shifts of eight hours each (the other guards remained on call). Guards were instructed to do whatever they thought was necessary to maintain law and order in the prison and to command the respect of the prisoners. No physical violence was permitted.
Zimbardo observed the behavior of the prisoners and guards (as a researcher), and also acted as a prison warden.
findings
Within a very short time both guards and prisoners were settling into their new roles, with the guards adopting theirs quickly and easily.
physical punishment
The prisoners were taunted with insults and petty orders, they were given pointless and boring tasks to accomplish, and they were generally dehumanized
Push-ups were a common form of physical punishment imposed by the guards.
Prisoner #8612
Less than 36 hours into the experiment, Prisoner #8612 began suffering from acute emotional disturbance, disorganized thinking, uncontrollable crying, and rage.
After a meeting with the guards where they told him he was weak, but offered him “informant” status, #8612 returned to the other prisoners and said “You can”t leave. You can’t quit.”
Soon #8612 “began to act ‘crazy,’ to scream, to curse, to go into a rage that seemed out of control.” It wasn’t until this point that the psychologists realized they had to let him out.
conclusion
Zimbardo (1973) had intended that the experiment should run for two weeks, but on the sixth day, it was terminated, due to the emotional breakdowns of prisoners, and excessive aggression of the guards.
