The Stanford Prison Experiment: A Simulation Study of the Psychology of Imprisonment. Philip Zimbardo: Why ordinary people do evil ... or do good. Stanford prison experiment 3. Stanford prison experiment 2. Our Dark Hearts: The Stanford Prison Experiment. The experiment that inspired a novel, two films, countless TV programs, re-enactments and even a band.
“The vilest deeds like poison weeds bloom well in prison air” – Oscar Wilde. The best psychological experiments ask timeless questions about human nature, like what makes a person evil? Can a good person commit evil acts? If so, what can make people cross the line? This nomination for the best social psychology research – the famous ‘Stanford Prison Experiment’ – argues a strong case for the power of the situation (Zimbardo, 1971). Prisoners and guards The idea was simple: to see how ordinary men, chosen to be the most healthy and ‘normal’ would respond to a radical change to their normal roles in life.
‘Prisoners’ were ‘arrested’ by a police car with sirens wailing while they were out going about their everyday business. The other participants were made into guards who wore uniforms and were given clubs. And so the experiment began. Rebellion crushed Playing the roles Rikers Island. When Situations Not Personality Dictate Our Behaviour. A modern test of an ancient bible story demonstrates the power of situations to trump personality in determining behaviour. A fundamental mistake we often make when judging other people is assuming that their behaviour mainly reflects their personality. Unfortunately this ignores another major influence on how people behave staring us right in the face: the situation.
Our personalities certainly have an influence on what situations we get into and how we deal with them, but situational factors — even relatively subtle ones — can completely obliterate the effects of personality. Don’t take my word for it, though, consider a modern take on an ancient bible story. Prominent social psychologists Darley & Batson (1973) were interested in what influences people’s helping behaviours and decided to test the parable of the Good Samaritan. A good Samaritan Unknown to the study’s participants, they were to experience their very own ‘Good Samaritan’ test. “Oh, you’re late. In a hurry, can’t stop.