Stanford Prison Experiment
3. Identify the independent and depend variables?
1. Independent Variable: What role they played (prisoner or prison guard) 2. Dependent Variable: Behavior (How obedient they were)
6. How or why does SPE relate to sociology?
1. Stanford Prison Experiment relates to sociology because in terms of structional-functional sociology, the experiment showed the dynamic between the powerful guards and the powerless prisoners, which showed how continuous oppression occurs. 2. The manifest function of the Stanford prison experiment was to study the participants from a sociological perspective. The latest function was for the guards to inflict punishment or carry out their own sadistic wishes on the prisoners
Were there any ethical dilemmas Dr. Zimbardo faced during the experiment and what ultimately lead to the abrupt end of SPE?
1. The Stanford Prison Experiment is highly criticized for its ethical issues. Zimbardo has admitted that he did not initially believe the study would be unethical; however, in the aftermath, he realized the abuse suffered by the participants was unethical 2. Several experimenters had left mid-experiment and the whole experiment was abandoned after 6 days.
How many participants were part of the (SPE), how much were the participants paid to play the role of prisoner or guard, how long was the experiment supposed to last vs how long did it actually last?
1. The students were getting paid $15b a day, so roughly within 6 days of the experiment they had gotten paid $95. 2. The experiment was supposed to last 14 days (2 weeks) but instead it lasted 6 days.
How was the Stanford experiment concieved
The Stanford Experiment was concieved as a way to use ordinary college students explore the often volatile dynamic that exists in between prisoners and prison guards.
What societal issues or social phenomenon lead Dr Zimbardo to create the SPE?
The Stanford prison experiment was a social psychology experiment influenced by the Milgram experiment that attempted to investigate the psychological effects of perceived power, focusing on the struggle between prisoners and prison officers
What was the overall purpose of the experiment
The purpose of the experiment was to study behavior and psychological consequences of becoming prisoner or prison guard, to do that they decided to simulate a prison environment, both physically and mentally and then to observe the effects of the institution on all those within its walls.
Consider the steps of the Scientific Method, and think of each step in the scientific method as question. Now use the SPE to answer each step of the scientific method as if it were a question posed to you.
The scientific method is an empirical method of acquiring knowledge that has characterized the development of science since at least the 17th century. It involves careful observation, applying rigorous skepticism about what is observed, given that cognitive assumptions can distort how one interprets the observation. It involves formulating hypotheses, via induction, based on such observations; experimental and measurement-based testing of deductions drawn from the hypotheses; and refinement (or elimination) of the hypotheses based on the experimental findings. These are principles of the scientific method, as distinguished from a definitive series of steps applicable to all scientific enterprises.
