Stanford Prison Experiment Philip G Zimbardo

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The Stanford Prison Experiment of social psychologist, Philip G. Zimbardo was conducted at Stanford University in 1971. Twenty-four men who volunteered for the experiment were thorouIntro: The Stanford Prison Experiment of social psychologist, Philip G. Zimbardo was conducted at Stanford University in 1971. Twenty-four men who volunteered for the experiment were thoroughly selected (physically And mentally healthy, intelligent, and middle class members). Participants were randomly assigned either to the role of a guard or to the role of a prisoner in a simulated prison environment.

Within a short period of time the subjects adopted to their roles of guards and prisoners. The guards started to practice their authority, taking control over the prisoners, giving punishments and rewards …show more content…

The idea of deindividuation was presented for the first time by Le Bon then Festinger, Pepitone, and Newcomb (1952). They used the term to describe the effects of groups and crowds on the individuals’ behavior. Then Zimbardo, and Deiner emphasized on anonymity, which also facilates deindividuation. However, there are more factors in the causes of deindividuation such as arousel, altered state of conciousness, group membership, and lack of feeling responsibility.

In the Stanford Prison Experiment Zimbardo set up a prison like environment. In the basement of Stanford University they constructed the mock prison, with a yard, and a solitary room. The doors of the rooms were replaced with steel bars, and cell numbers were added. The point was to make the atmosphere as similar as possible to a real prison's, thus the subjects can conform into their roles.

To facilate deindividuation Zimbardo created anonymity by assigning an ID number for the prisoners, which was used instead of their name. The guards wore sunglasses, which created a sense of anonymity as well. (illusory

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