conformity to social roles

• Social roles

  A socially defined pattern of behaviour that is expected of people who occupy a certain social position or belong to a particular social category.

  Identifiable social roles include doctor, teacher, police officer ect.
• Stanford Prison Study (SPS)


  Zimbardo (1971) was concerned about the intense aggression within the U.S. prison system and thought the reason for aggression was not dispositional but situational, the environment of the prison itself and conformity to the social roles created by the prison environment. He designed the Stanford Prison Study to explore conformity to social roles in a simulated prison environment.
• SPS aim

  To understand the psychological impact of situational forces by observing how typical, healthy individuals would conform to assigned social roles of guards (oppressive) and prisoners (submissive).
• SPE Procedure

  An observational study of 24 male students from the U.S., who volunteered to participate in a 7-14 day study, receiving $15 per day. After psychological assessments to ensure they were stable and healthy, participants were randomly assigned to either the role of a prisoner or a guard.
• Prisoners: procedure

  Experienced unexpected arrests at home, given prison uniforms and ID numbers, and three prisoners were placed in each small mock prison cell. They were given a list of rules to follow and limited rights, such as three meals a day, supervised toilet trips, and visits.
• Guards: procedure


  Were given uniforms, clubs, whistles, and reflective sunglasses to establish authority and were instructed to manage the prison without harming the prisoners. In teams of three, the guards worked 8-hour shifts, after which they were allowed to leave the site.
• Zimbardo

  Oversaw the experiment in the roles of the chief prison superintendent and lead investigator.
• SPS Findings

  Participants quickly lost their personal identities and adapted to their assigned social roles.

  Prisoners - after a failed attempt at resistance, showed signs of stress, anxiety, passivity and helplessness; some were released early after emotional breakdowns.

  Guards - empowered by their uniforms and anonymity provided by sunglasses, displayed sadistic aggression and domineering behaviour.

  The study was halted after just 6 days due to the ethical concerns raised.
• What does Zimbardo's prison study suggest?

  Suggests situational factors, rather than individual personality traits (dispositional facotrs), can drive behaviour, as people who were considered 'normal' and 'healthy' before the experiment engaged in abusive or submissive behaviours as a result of their assigned social roles and the prison environment.
• + Creation of ethical guidelines


  E - The harmful treatment of participants led to the formal recognition of ethical guidelines by the American Psychological Association.

  E - Studies must now undergo an extensive review by an ethics committee before they are implemented.

  L - Therefore, the problems with SPS has allowed other further research to be more ethical.
• / Conflicting evidence


  E - Reicher and Haslam's replication of the SPS for the BBC challenged his conclusions by demonstrating the participants do not inevitably conform to their assigned roles. They found that participants resisted behaviours that conflicted with their identities.

  E - Suggests that social roles have limited influence, and individuals have agency and moral choice in their actions.

  L - Therefore, Zimbardo's findings and conclusions may be seen to lack validity.
• + Contribution to prison policy


  E - Juveniles accused of federal crimes are no longer housed before trial with adult prisoners.

  E - Due to the risk of violence against them as shown in the study.

  L - However, it has also transformed prisons in ways to counter the SPS by favouring punishment and and sentencing has become rigid.
• / Ethical issues


  E - There was a lack of fully informed consent by participants as Zimbardo himself did not know what would happen.

  E - Prisoners did not consent to being arrested and were not protected from psychological harm e.g., one prisoner had to be released after 36 hours.

  L - However, Zimbardo's experiment allowed the creation of the ethical guidelines.
• / Possible experimenter bias


  E - Zimbardo took on a dual role as the principle investigator and prison superintendent which may have led to experimenter bias since his presence could have influenced P's behaviour to fit the expected outcomes of the study.

  E - Demand characteristics are likely to have occurred and there has even be evidence that guards were trained to be aggressive.

  L - Therefore, the study may lack validity due to experimental bias and possible demand characteristics.