Stanford Prison experiment

by Doctor Zimbardo
The Evil seen as Monstrosity
The traditional and popular concept of evil is well radicated in the idea that only those who have a
twisted or compromised personality can actually cause harm. This understanding of the evil, caused
only by the monstrosity of someone, doesnt address the action of being evil to any other reason or
factor. Those who cause harm are non-humans and the reason why they behave in that way can be
only find by searching in the deepest corner of their sick mind. This definition is so popular and so
shared because it reassure us: we couldnt behave in that way, we couldnt do anything bad. We are
dealing with an idea of Evil that not only is discharging us, but also the entire society and social
system -including all the individuals that live within it-, that at that point can assume that they are
doing good and that they have no responsibility in the evil that may happen near them. This naive
representation of evil is based on an absolute dichotomy: on one side we have the heinous evil, on the
other we have the good, two opposing entities that are excluding one another.

The absolution from responsibility

In Zimbardos assay The Lucifer Effect, he summarises the situation as:
The idea that an unbridgeable chasm separates good people
from bad people is a source of comfort for at least two reasons.
First, it creates a binary logic, in which Evil is essentialized. Most
of us perceive Evil as an entity, a quality that is inherent in some
people and not in others. Bad seeds ultimately produce bad fruits
as their destinies unfold. We define evil by pointing to the really
bad tyrants in our era, such as Hitler, Stalin, Pol Pot, Idi Amin,
Saddam Hussein, and other political leaders who have
orchestrated mass murders.... Upholding a Good-Evil dichotomy
also takes "good people" off the responsibility hook. They are
freed from even considering their possible role in creating, sustaining, perpetuating, or conceding to
the conditions that contribute to delinquency, crime, vandalism, teasing, bullying, rape, torture, terror,
and violence. "It's the way of the world, and there's not much that can be done to change it, certainly
not by me."

Evils Disposition and Situational conception

In our individualistic society the certainty that the behavior of a person is always brought by his or
her inner disposition is very well radicated, meanwhile we underestimate the importance that the
situation where this person is acting has. The situational theory that is supported by Zimbardo brings
us to consider absolutely crucial the situation where the person is positioned, situation that can
actually make the person act in a way that can be even radically different from his own usual
behavior.

Abu Ghraib instance

Abu Ghraib is one of Bagdads prison. The instance took place in 2004, when some photos of
American Soldiers that were continuously torturing Iraqi prisoners were published in some
newspapers. USAs government, who knew what was going on, was forced to apologize to the
entire nation. The Psychologist Philip Zimbardo, Stanford prison experiment author, was called to
examine and to judge the photos, that mostly remained hidden to the public because of their high
blood and violence rate.
Abu Ghraibs tortures photos
The Stanford prison experiment
The Stanford prison experiment is one of the most important and famous experiments in
psychologys history and was conceived by a team of psychologists leaded by Philip Zimbardo. This
experiment took place in Stanford University from the 14th to the 20th of August in 1971, and started to
study the influence that the institution made on ones behavior. The experiment consisted in a
simulation of the prison-like life lived by 24 volunteers that had to play as prisoners (12) and as
security guards (12) for 2 weeks. The prison was set up in Stanfords basement and Zimbardo was
helped by some expert in prisons, including an ex prisoner.
Zimbardo and his team searched for volunteers by putting a notice in the local newspapers offering
15$ per day. The volunteers were further selected by making them do a psychometric test in order to
reject those who could show some personality problems, twisted or violent behaviors etc. The roles
of prisoners and security guards were selected randomly. Zimbardo played the role of Jail Director.
Those who would like to know the Stanford Prison Experiment details- that lasted until the sixth day
because of the dangerous twist that the experiment was taking- can go to the official site of the
experiment on: Stanford Prison Experiment
Here you can find the summed up record of the experiment ( via Simply Psychology):
Participants were randomly assigned to either the role of prisoner or guard in a simulated prison
environment. There were 2 reserves and one dropped out, finally leaving 10 prisoners and 11 guards.
There was also a solitary confinement cell for prisoners who 'misbehaved'. The prison simulation
was kept as real life as possible. Prisoners were treated like every other criminal, being arrested at
their own homes, without warning, and taken to the local police station. They were fingerprinted,
photographed and booked. Then they were blindfolded and driven to the psychology department
of Stanford University, where Zimbardo had had the basement set out as a prison, with barred doors
and windows, bare walls and small cells. Here the deindividuation process began. When the
prisoners arrived at the prison they were stripped naked, deloused, had all their personal possessions
removed and locked away, and were given prison clothes and bedding. They were issued a uniform,
and referred to by their number only. The use of ID numbers was a way to make prisoners feel
anonymous. Each prisoner had to be called only by his ID number and could only refer to himself
and the other prisoners by number. Their clothes comprised a smock with their number written on it,
but no underclothes. They also had a tight nylon cap to cover their hair, and a locked chain around
one ankle. All guards were dressed in identical uniforms of khaki, and they carried a whistle around

their neck and a billy club borrowed from the police. Guards also wore special sunglasses, to make
eye contact with prisoners impossible. Three guards worked shifts of eight hours each (the other
guards remained on call). Guards were instructed to do whatever they thought was necessary to
maintain law and order in the prison and to command the respect of the prisoners. No physical
violence was permitted. Zimbardo observed the behavior of the prisoners and guards (as a
researcher), and also acted as a prison warden. Within hours of beginning the experiment some
guards began to harass prisoners. They behaved in a brutal and sadistic manner, apparently enjoying
it. Other guards joined in, and other prisoners were also tormented. The prisoners were taunted with
insults and petty orders, they were given pointless and boring tasks to accomplish, and they were
generally dehumanized. Push-ups were a common form of physical punishment imposed by the
guards. The prisoners soon adopted prisoner-like behavior too. They talked about prison issues a
great deal of the time. They told tales on each other to the guards. They started taking the prison
rules very seriously, as though they were there for the prisoners benefit and infringement would
spell disaster for all of them. Some even began siding with the guards against prisoners who did not
obey the rules. Over the next few days the relationships between the guards and the prisoners
changed, with a change in one leading to a change in the other. Remember that the guards were
firmly in control and the prisoners were totally dependent on them. As the prisoners became more
dependent, the guards became more derisive towards them. They held the prisoners in contempt and
let the prisoners know it. As the guards contempt for them grew, the prisoners became more
submissive. As the prisoners became more submissive, the guards became more aggressive and
assertive. They demanded ever greater obedience from the prisoners. The prisoners were
dependent on the guards for everything so tried to find ways to please the guards, such as telling tales
on fellow prisoners.During the second day of the experiment the prisoners removed their stocking
caps, ripped off their numbers, and barricaded themselves inside the cells by putting their beds
against the door. The guards retaliated by using a fire extinguisher which shot a stream of
skin-chilling carbon dioxide, and they forced the prisoners away from the doors. Next, the guards
broke into each cell, stripped the prisoners naked and took the beds out. The ringleaders of the
prisoner rebellion were placed into solitary confinement. After this the guards generally began to
harass and intimidate the prisoners.Prisoner#8612 had to be released after 36 hours because of
uncontrollable bursts of screaming, crying and anger. His thinking became disorganized and he
appeared to be entering the early stages of a deep depression. Within the next few days three others
also had to leave after showing signs of emotional disorder that could have had lasting consequences.
(These were people who had been pronounced stable and normal a short while before). Zimbardo
(1973) had intended that the experiment should run for a fortnight, but on the sixth day it was
terminated. Christina Maslach, a recent Stanford Ph.D. brought in to conduct interviews with the
guards and prisoners, strongly objected when she saw the prisoners being abused by the guards.
Filled with outrage, she said, "It's terrible what you are doing to these boys!" Out of 50 or more
outsiders who had seen our prison, she was the only one who ever questioned its morality.Zimbardo
(2008) later noted, It wasn't until much later that I realized how far into my prison role I was at that
point -- that I was thinking like a prison superintendent rather than a research psychologist.

The Lucifer Effect

The problem where Zimbardo starts his research is: How is it possible that an individual that is
usually respectful and morally adequate can act in a cruel and evil way? The answer is The evil is
the exercise of power on others in a situation where you dont feel responsible of your actions.
Zimbardo thinks that the transformation that takes place in an individual that leads to harm other
people, is a result of the Lucifer Effect, main character of the passage from the angels prince to evil
prince. The Lucifer effect is a result of three different happenings:
-dispositional: the bad apple, the individual alone with his will, his tendencies and his behavior
-situational: the situation where the evil act is set, the situation where the individual is put that
conditions his acting.
-systemic: the social system that influences the two previous variables. The economic, political,
cultural power, determines the situation in which the individual is acting.