Zimbardo experiment Flashcards
Aim of Zimbardo experiment
To investigate how ready people would conform to their social roles in a stimulated experiment.
What is social roles?
A set of behaviours that are expected of someone who holds a particular status
How many participants
21 American students participants who volunteered
How did they choose the participants before the experiment?
They went through a psychological test to determine if they are ready for the experiment
Procedure
+Basement of Stanford uni psychology building converted into a ‘prison’.
+American student volunteers were paid to take part in the study.
+They were randomly issued one of two roles; guard or prisoner.
+Both prisoners and guards had to wear uniforms.
+Prisoners were only referred to by their assigned number.
+Guards were given props like handcuffs and sunglasses (to make eye contact with prisoners impossible and to reinforce the boundaries between the two social roles within the established social hierarchy).
+No one was allowed to leave the simulated prison.
+Guards worked eight hour shifts, while the others remained on call.
+Prisoners were only allowed in the hallway which acted as their yard, and to the toilet. The guards were allowed to control such behaviour, in order to emphasise their complete power over the prisoners!
+No physical violence was permitted, in line with ethical guidelines and to prevent complete overruling.
+The behaviour of the participants was observed
FIndings
+Roles were adapted really fast by ‘P’ and ‘G’.
+‘G’ was more aggressive. Forcing ‘P’ to clean the toilet with their bare hands, doing exercise in the middle of the night. They later reported to have enjoyed doing so and relished in their new-found power and control.
+‘P’ rebelled against the harsh treatment from the ‘G’. Ripped their clothes and swore at the ‘G’
+‘P’ would only talk to ‘P’ about the prison issue (forgetting their previous real life)
–> This suggests that ‘P’ believes that the prison was real and was not acting to demand characteristics.
+‘P’ would even defend the guards when other ‘P’ broke the rule, reinforcing the social roles as being ‘P’ and ‘G’ despite not being real.
Conclusion
‘G’ and ‘P’ would all conform to their social roles within the prison
–> Reveals the power of the situation to influence human behaviours
3 evaluation points
Control
Lack of realism
Lack of research support
Control
*Because of being in a control environment, Zimbardo can control some variables
+Selection of ppts: choosing the one who are emotionally stable
—> increases internal validity, much more confident in drawing conclusion about the influence of social roles
Lack of realism
*Could not be implicated in real life as lack realism
+Banuazizi and Mohavedi argued the ppts were acting rather than conforming to their roles. Stereotyping how ‘P’ and ‘G’ act in a prison. Example: one of the ‘G’ claimed he had based his role on a brutal character from a movie. This would explain why ‘P’ would be rebelled because they thought that’s what ‘P’ should do.
-However, Zimbardo pointed out quantitative data: 90% of the prisoners convo was about prison life, prisoner 416 expressed the view that the prison was real.
