Zimbardo study

Question 1

Zimbardo research

what was procedure?

Answer 1

procedure
- set up a mock prison in basement of psychology department at Stanford university.
- they advertised to student who were willing to volunteer and selected those who were deemed “emotionally stable”
- students were randomly assigned to role of guards and prisoners
-social role of prisoners and guards were strictly divided.
- prisoners routines were heavily regulated. prisoners names were never used just numbers
- guards had their own uniforms, wooden club, handcuff, keys and mirror shades and were told they had complete power over prisoners.

Question 2

What was Zimbardo’s findings?

what was his conclusions

Answer 2

• guards took up their role with enthusiasm
• within 2 days prisoners rebelled against harsh treatment by the guards
• guards highlighted difference in social roles by creating plenty of opportunities to enforce rules and even punish even slightest misdemeanour.
• after rebellion, prisoners become depressed and study was stopped after 6 days instead of 14 days.

conclusions
- guards, prisoners and researchers all conformed to their roles within the prison.

these role were easily taken on by participants.

even volunteers who were taken in to perform certain functions such as “prison chaplain” found themselves behaving as if they were in prison rather than psychological study.

Question 3

evaluation of Zimbardo study

weakness

strength

weakness

Answer 3

Lack of mundane realism. Other psychologists have argued that the participants were merely play acting rather than genuinely conforming to their roles. Their behaviour was based purely on stereotypes that they have seen on how prisoners and guards are supposed to behave. One guard said that he based his behaviour off of a guard he saw in the movie ‘Cold Hand Luke’. This also explains the prisoners’ riot as that is what they expected prisoners to do.

Study has high internal validity because of the control over the variables, meaning we can be confident in drawing conclusions about behaviour from the study

Ethical issues. By acting as both researcher and prison superintendent, Zimbardo created a major ethical issue as he made it difficult for the participants to leave. When a prisoner asked to leave, Zimbardo responded as a prison superintendent concerned about his prison instead of as a psychologist worried about his participant’s mental state.