The Stanford Prison Experiment is a movie based on the social experiment done at Stanford, California. I was told that the movie was a bit dramatized for Hollywood so instead of writing just based on the movie I decided to research the experiment more, and I was able to find a website dedicated to what occurred, including pictures, videos, and narration from the man behind the entire experiment, Philip G. Zimbardo. The story begins as follows: there was an ad put out in the local newspaper looking for people to volunteer in a study exploring the psychological effects of prison life and after receiving 70 applicants, 24 were ultimately chosen to participate. Participants would earn $15/day and all participants were described as “healthy, intelligent, middle class males.” From here the boys were randomly assigned a role, either a prisoner or a guard, by the flip of a coin. They simulated a prison using a basement hallway at the university, including a “hole” for solitary confinement in which prisoners were not allowed to spend more than an hour in, a rule which would later be broken. What was supposed to be a two week excursion ended up being a 6 day disaster, in which control over the guards as well as the prisoners was quickly lost. Prisoners were stripped, searched, and forced into doing exercises such as push ups or jumping jacks as punishment. Prisoners would rebel only the second day by ripping off their numbers and caps and pushing their beds in front of the doors to block the guards from getting in. Guards responded by calling in backup, using a fire extinguisher on the prisoners, taking the beds out of their rooms altogether, and putting the leaders of this rebellion in the hole. This was one of the shifting points in the experiment, it became evident that the prisoners were beginning to take on their role psychologically just as the guards did, letting the power or lack thereof get to their heads. As time went on, Zimbardo’s colleagues became intrigued with his experiment, many were even disgusted. They declared that there was no independent variable, many went on to write articles and essays denouncing the experiment. The experiment ended faster than anticipated due to the psychological strife the inmates were under. I believe it was incredibly cruel to put these innocent men under this type of experiment. With that being said, the experiment did provide the public with a compelling conclusion about the dangers of prison life and the psychological damage it can do to both prisoners and guards. This experiment is a clear demonstration of how easy it is for power to get to a person’s head. While watching this experiment I just kept thinking “The prisoners are innocent. They do not deserve this treatment.” I wonder, however, if the “prisoners” in the experiment had committed a crime, would I have been as quick to be sympathetic? Would I have been as worried about their well-being? And for the guards, I was completely disgusted with their treatment of the prisoners. There was nothing that separated the men besides the clothes they were wearing, so how could the guards really treat these people as less than? The purpose of this experiment was to see the hunger for power which existed among both the guards and prisoners. It was disheartening to watch the film and read about the experiment, but it opened my eyes to how this idea of “”psychologically” taking on a role in life occurs every day, not just in prisons. This happens with police officers, drill sergeants, school bullies, and even older siblings. Not always is it a bad thing, but it will definitely be something I take notice of from now on.
“The purpose was to understand the development of norms and the effects of roles, labels, and social expectations in a simulated prison environment.” https://www.prisonexp.org/