Conformity to social roles: Zimbardo

• What is Zimbardo’s procedure?

  • A mock prison was set up in the basement of the psychology department at Stanford university.
  • A group of students were randomly assigned to 2 social roles - prisoner or prison guard/officer.
  • Prisoners - given a set of rules to follow.
  • Guards - asked to enforce the 16 rules. Uniform - reflective sunglasses.
• What were the conclusions of Zimbardo’s procedure?

  • The simulation revealed the power of the situation in influencing people’s behaviour.
  • Guards, prisoners and researchers conformed to their roles.
• What does Zimbardo mean by ’bad apples or bad barrels’?

  The people became bad apples because of their environment which is a bad barrel. Evil behaviour does not come from others it comes from our environment.
• What are the ethics of experiments?

  • informed consent
  • deception
  • right to withdraw
  • protection from harm
  • confidentiality
  • privacy
• What is the difference between conformity and obedience?

  Conformity occurs between people of equal status and has an emphasis on acceptance. Obedience occurs within a hierarchy and has an emphasis on power.