Summary Of The Stanford Prison Experiment

This book is divided into sixteen chapters.
Chapters 2 to 11 is all about the Stanford Prison Experiment (SPE). Though people know the SPE, in this book, he gives a detailed explanation of everything which is not mentioned in the publications. There were a group of applicants selected for this experiment, whose backgrounds were checked and had no psychological problems. These individuals were arrested one fine day from college, without a notice. These participants were then randomly divided into guards and prisoners. I am shocked by the guards’ behavior within 48 hours of the experiment. The guards punished the prisoners to be naked, shaved their heads, tied a chain to their legs etc. So, the SPE is about how people get carried away by their assigned roles within no time, in a negative way. What surprised me was that Zimbardo didn’t end the experiment or at least set some limits to the punishments, until his future

Here, Zimbardo discusses about the unsung heroes who usually don’t take credit for the good deeds they have done. In addition, Islamic terrorism is on the rise more than ever. Innocent people are seduced into “evil” in the name of God and religion. They believe that God doesn’t consider it as a sin if a person commits a murder, for the sake of their religion. It is up to such an extent that even innocent children who don’t understand the meaning of religion and crime are preached, trained and brainwashed to commit a crime in the name of religion. Can you categorize these children as “evil” as they were taught to commit horrendous crimes, although they’re innocent and have no knowledge of their doings?
To conclude, I believe Zimbardo helps us understand how we can come out or walk through difficult situations by not being immoral or unethical, although I don’t agree with his argument that situations make people act in a “bad” way, as Zimbardo himself has given steps to resist unwanted