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Option Psychology
KEY STUDY: The Stanford Prison Experiment.
A study of prisoners and guards in a simulated prison.
This Study, led by Philip Zimbardo, describes a famous experiment which has been the subject of much discussion and controversy. From this it is intended to examine ethical principles, the experiment as a research method and some of the issues involved in observation.
AIM AND NATURE OF THE STUDY
This study is an excerpt from one of the most famous and controversial pieces of research in social psychology. The excerpt here appeared the Naval Review, although it was reported in several others, in particular a statement prepared by the lead author (Philip Zimbardo) for a Congressional Enquiry into prison Reform.
The study is an experiment. Participants are randomly assigned to one of two groups: prisoners or guards.
A summary of the hypothesis being tested is that assignment to guard or prisoner results in significantly different reactions on scales of behavioural interaction, mood, attitudes and other measures.
It is also a simulation study, or role play, in which observation plays an important part. While much qualitative data was produced, this was also measurable.
THE STUDY
Haney, C., Banks, C. and Zimbardo, P., (1973) A study of prisoners and guards in a simulated prison. Naval Research Reviews 30 (9), 4-17
After he had spent four years in a Siberian prison, the great Russian novelist Dosto-evsky commented surprisingly that his time in prison had created in him a deep optimism about the ultimate future of mankind because, as he put it, if a man could survive the horrors of prison life he must surely be a 'creature who could withstand anything'. The cruel irony which Dostoevsky overlooked is that the reality of prison bears witness not only to the resilience and adaptiveness of the men who tolerate life within its walls, but also to the 'ingenuity' and tenacity of
those
Option Psychology
KEY STUDY: The Stanford Prison Experiment.
A study of prisoners and guards in a simulated prison.
This Study, led by Philip Zimbardo, describes a famous experiment which has been the subject of much discussion and controversy. From this it is intended to examine ethical principles, the experiment as a research method and some of the issues involved in observation.
AIM AND NATURE OF THE STUDY
This study is an excerpt from one of the most famous and controversial pieces of research in social psychology. The excerpt here appeared the Naval Review, although it was reported in several others, in particular a statement prepared by the lead author (Philip Zimbardo) for a Congressional Enquiry into prison Reform.
The study is an experiment. Participants are randomly assigned to one of two groups: prisoners or guards.
A summary of the hypothesis being tested is that assignment to guard or prisoner results in significantly different reactions on scales of behavioural interaction, mood, attitudes and other measures.
It is also a simulation study, or role play, in which observation plays an important part. While much qualitative data was produced, this was also measurable.
THE STUDY
Haney, C., Banks, C. and Zimbardo, P., (1973) A study of prisoners and guards in a simulated prison. Naval Research Reviews 30 (9), 4-17
After he had spent four years in a Siberian prison, the great Russian novelist Dosto-evsky commented surprisingly that his time in prison had created in him a deep optimism about the ultimate future of mankind because, as he put it, if a man could survive the horrors of prison life he must surely be a 'creature who could withstand anything'. The cruel irony which Dostoevsky overlooked is that the reality of prison bears witness not only to the resilience and adaptiveness of the men who tolerate life within its walls, but also to the 'ingenuity' and tenacity of
those