Conformity to Social Roles

• What is a social role?

  The parts that people play as members of various social groups e.g. teachers and students. These are accompanied by expectations that we, and others, have of what is appropriate behaviour in each role. We internalise these expectations, so they shape our behaviour.
• Who conducted research into conformity to social roles?

  Zimbardo
• What was the aim of Zimbardo's study?

  To investigate how freely people would conform to the roles of guard and prisoner in a role-playing exercise that recreated prison life.
• What was the sample in Zimbardo's study?

  A volunteer sample of 24 'emotionally stable' (determined by psychological testing prior to the study) US male university students.
• What method was used in Zimbardo's study?

  A controlled participant observation.
• What was the first step in Zimbardo's study procedure?

  Randomly allocated roles to students
• How were prisoners treated upon their arrival in the study?

  They were arrested, searched, and deloused
• What clothing were prisoners dressed in during the study?

  Smock uniforms
• Why were prisoners referred to by numbers instead of names?

  To deindividuate participants
• What items were guards given in Zimbardo's study?

  Uniforms, a night stick, and mirrored glasses
• What were guards instructed to do in the study?

  Keep prisoners under control without physical violence
• Where was Zimbardo's mock prison located?

  In the basement of Stanford University
• What was established for the prisoners in the mock prison?

  A regular routine of shifts and mealtimes
• Who took on the role of prison superintendent in the study?

  Zimbardo
• What additional structures were included in the mock prison setup?

  Visiting times, a parole board, and a chaplain
• What was the initial reaction of the prisoners in Zimbardo's study?

  They rebelled and ripped off their numbers
• How did the guards respond to the prisoners' rebellion?

  They locked them in their cells and confiscated blankets
• What trend was observed in the punishments administered by the guards?

  They escalated over the course of the experiment
• What types of humiliation did the prisoners experience?

  They were humiliated and deprived of sleep
• How did the prisoners identify themselves during the study?

  By their prison numbers instead of their names
• What psychological effects did the prisoners experience?

  They became depressed and showed stress-related reactions
• How many prisoners were released early due to psychological disturbance?

  Three prisoners
• What was the intended duration of Zimbardo's role play experiment?

  Two weeks
• Why was the experiment called off early?

  It was called off after just six days
• What conclusions were made from Zimbardo's study?

  • Guards, prisoners and researchers conformed to their role within the prison.

  • Social roles have extraordinary power over individuals.
• How can some of the procedures used by Zimbardo be questioned?

  • Zimbardo took on the role of prison superintendent - could have influenced how the ppts acted within the study.

  • E.g. may have conformed to their role as they believed that is what Zimbardo wanted them to do (demand characteristics) - rather than because they were actually conforming to their social role (prisoner/guard) due to the prison environment.

  • Lowering the internal validity
• How does Zimbardo take measures within his procedures to improve internal validity?

  • The ppts were all deemed 'emotionally stable' before the study - randomly allocated to prisoner/guard - with no influence from Zimbardo.

  • It is less likely to be the guards' natural temperament that made them more aggressive - it is the environment of the prison - what Zimbardo is measuring.

  • Increasing the internal validity.
• What ethical issues are there in Zimbardo's study?

  • Lack of informed consent - the prisoners did not consent to being arrested at their homes.

  • A lack of the right to withdraw - one prisoner wanted to leave and spoke to Zimbardo - asked to be 'released' from the prison - Zimbardo responded as the superintendent rather than an experimenter with a responsibility to the ppts.

  • Protection from harm - some ppts showed signs of psychological disturbance.
• What are the practical applications of Zimbardo's study?

  • Used to predict and explain behaviour in the real world.

  • Actions displayed by soldiers in Abu Ghraib military prison in Iraq - similar to Zimbardo's findings - prisoners were tortured, humiliated and physically abused.

  • Zimbardo's research can be used when developing prevention programmes - used for training purposes in prisons.

  • Important part of applied psychology - good external validity.
• How can Zimbardo's research be criticised for gender bias?

  • Male only sample (androcentric)

  • It is difficult to generalise the findings to women.

  • Role of guard - violent - females would not conform as much - stereotypically are more caring/concerned for others.

  • Reducing the external validity.