De-individuation and Institutionalisation

• De-individuation


  The psychological state aroused when individuals join crowds or large groups, where they feel a 'cloak of anonymity' that diminishes personal consequences for their actions
• Factors contributing to de-individuation

  • Anonymity (e.g. wearing a uniform)
  • Altered consciousness due to drugs or alcohol
• The process of de-individuation

  1. People normally refrain from acting aggressively due to social norms and fear of identification

  2. Being anonymous in a crowd reduces inner restraints and increases usually inhibited behaviours

  3. Anonymity minimises concerns about evaluation by others, weakening barriers to anti-social behaviour based on guilt or shame
• Research on de-individuation


  • Zimbardo et al's Stanford prison study (1972) - 'guards' wearing mirrored sunglasses acted aggressively towards 'prisoners'
  • Zhong (2010) - wearing mirrored sunglasses increases feelings of anonymity and de-individuation
• Gender differences in de-individuation effects

  • Zimbardo (1969) - female undergraduates in de-individuated condition (hooded, no name tags) more likely to deliver shocks to a victim
• Institutional aggression


  Aggression that occurs within the prison environment
• Situational explanation: The deprivation model

  • Institutional aggression is a product of the stressful prison conditions, including loss of liberty, autonomy and security
  • Inmates cope through withdrawal or violence against others
  • Violence is a way to survive exploitation and gain respect/express loyalty
• The role of prison characteristics

  • Overcrowding
  • High temperatures and noise predispose inmates to aggression
• Dispositional explanation: The importation model

  • Inmates bring their violent pasts and survival skills to prison
  • Cultural belief systems like 'the code of the street' define behaviour, especially for gang members
  • Individual characteristics like anger, anti-social personality, impulsivity, and low self-control predict institutional aggression