Zimbardo's experiment

Question 1

what are social roles

Answer 1

-the behaviour patterns expected of individuals in different situations and settings based on their specific position within a social unit

Question 2

what do social roles do

Answer 2

-help structure interactions within groups and crucial in shaping individual behaviour, identity or social dynamics

Question 3

where did Zimbardo do his experiment

Answer 3

-a mock prison built in the basement of stand ford uni

Question 4

previous theory to why people are brutal vs Zimbardo’s theory

Answer 4

-previous= dispositional attribution
-Zimbardo= argues that it is the situation that makes people act the way they do rather than dispositional factors

Question 5

what is dispositional attribution

Answer 5

-it is not the environment that makes people act in the way the do
-rather it is the dispositions of those who live and work there

Question 6

who played the prisoners and guards and what did they have to do

Answer 6

-21 men who were student volunteers that were tested to be “emotionally stable”
-had to conform to social roles through the uniforms and instructions abt their behaviour

Question 7

how did uniforms affect the prisoners and guards

Answer 7

-prisoners given loose smock and cap, identified by numbers
-guards had mirror shades, military uniform, handcuffs

Question 8

what was the point in the uniform

Answer 8

-to create a loss of personal identity called de-individuation meaning they would be more likely to conform

Question 9

example of how prisoners encouraged to identify with their role

Answer 9

-instead of leaving the study early, prisoners could “apply for parole”
-guards reminded they had complete power over prisoners

Question 10

what happened within two days

Answer 10

-the prisoners rebelled, such as ripping their uniform, shouting, swearing

Question 11

how did guards react to rebellion

Answer 11

-retaliated with fire extinguishers

Question 12

examples of how guards mistreated the prisoners

Answer 12

-using the “divide and rule tactic” to divide the prisoners
-harassed prisoners through headcounts (at night), humiliating them
-through the degradation process

Question 13

what happened to multiple prisoners after the rebellion

Answer 13

-they were released
-one showed symptoms of psychological disturbance
-one went on hunger strike

Question 14

what did guards do in response to hunger strike

Answer 14

-force feed and then punished by putting in “the hole”

Question 15

why did the experiment have to stop

Answer 15

-other psychologist had reviewed the experiment and cut it after 6 days rather than intended 14
-Zimbardo played both superintendent and experimenter so couldn’t see the brutality

Question 16

what is it called when prisoners became fully immersed into the norms that they lost their identity and personal responsiblity

Answer 16

-deindividuation

Question 17

conclusions related to social roles

Answer 17

-social roles had a strong influence on behaviour
-guards became brutal and prisoners became submissive
-even volunteers who came in (such as prison chaplain) found themselves behaving as if they were in a prison and not a psychological study