Stanford Prison Project

The study conducted in 1971 at Stanford University was originally created by Dr. Zimbardo. The experiment was supposed to be a two week experiment but ended up becoming only a 6 day experiment. The individuals chosen to do the study were all tested prior to being chosen to make sure none of them had any issues both mentally and physically. The individuals chosen were split into 2 groups, guards and inmates. The inmates were picked up from their homes as if they were really going to prison. They were taken to the local police station and held there while they were being processed then were transferred to the Stanford University psychology department for the study. Dr. Zimbardo and his colleagues set up the psychology department as a prison. The guards were given batons and wore sunglasses so that the inmates could not see their eyes. The inmates were stripped naked upon arrival and given gowns to wear. The first day of the study was not as bad as the days following. The guards began to treat the inmates with disrespect and like animals, this type of treatment began directly after day one. The guards put inmates who they believed were going to be threats or trouble makers in solitary confinement and made inmates clean toilets with their bare hands. There were a few inmates who were rowdy and tried to become troublesome but the guards made them do push ups and did not give them bathroom breaks as punishments. At night they didn't allow the inmates to use the toilets, they were given buckets to use when needed. The guards did not change or clean the buckets daily, at times they would just let the "prison" smell like urine and feces. All the while this was a simple experiment and not a real prison, it seemed as though the "guards" and "inmates" forgot this fact. The attitudes and characteristics of each individual involved in the study were altered, many for the worst. All this happened within 6 days. Parents were allowed to come visit and began to cry upon departure, many asked that their sons be released. The inmates began to refer to themselves as numbers and not names which is an example of how easy it is for one to lose their identity. The effect of the Stanford Prison Experiment showed how easy an organization such as a prison can make individuals feel disenfranchised and out of character. The experiment started off as a good study to show the changes in individuals when their environments changed and peer pressures were apparent. After the experiment was conducted Dr. Zimbardo came to realize what is now known as the "Lucifer Effect" which examines how good people turn evil. The study and the Lucifer effect created by Zimbardo also explains how individuals in Abu Ghraib may have been good people who simply turned evil. When an individuals environment changes and peer pressures became too much to overcome they begin to do things that they would not ordinarily participate in.
While the experiment was a great one and gave way to Dr. Zimbardos Lucifer Effect it still was unethical, without the experiment we would not have been able to show how a persons actions and characteristics may become altered when they are given a title or when their environment changes. The Stanford Prison Project was poorly planned because the "guards" were not trained as an ordinary guard is trained. The "inmates" have to actually commit an offense to be put in prison, therefore the experiment was not planned to the best of its ability. It was unethical because the individuals conducting the experiment did not make proper accommodations for the test subjects.