PSYCH WK 2 - STANFORD PRISON
EXPERIMENT UPDATED ACTUAL Exam
Questions and CORRECT Answers
Briefly describe the key aim, method, and conclusion of the Stanford Prison Experiment
(Psychology of authority and abuse of power) - CORRECT ANSWER - Zimbardo and his
colleagues (1973) were interested in finding out whether the brutality reported among guards in
American prisons was due to the sadistic personalities of the guards (i.e., dispositional) or had
more to do with the prison environment (i.e., situational). In doing so he wanted to test the limits
of the attribution theory (by investigate how an institution affects the behaviour of an individual).
Young male college students volunteered to participate in a "psychological study of prison life"
for $15 a day were taken to a simulated prison in the basement of a psychology building (1973).
All of the participants were stable and had no symptoms of psychological disorders or physical
ailments. Participants were allocated a partner based on similar characteristics and mannerisms
(matched pairs), and each pair was assigned as a guard and prisoner by the flip of a coin (random
allocation). Within days the behaviour of participants began to change, prisoners showing signs
of stress and depression and guards becoming increasingly authoritarian and abusive.
What types of social power were at work? - CORRECT ANSWER - Legitimate and
reward social power
Coercive social behaviour - CORRECT ANSWER - from guards (who feel powerful and
therefore like they can punish the prisoners)
Normative conformity - CORRECT ANSWER - for guards wanting to reach the par of
other guards
Diendividuation of participants - CORRECT ANSWER - separate uniforms with glasses
etc (builds cohesion within group) Some guards start to lose identity when signing letters (sign as
prisoner No.) (Us vs Them)
,Cognitive dissonance - CORRECT ANSWER - Zimbardo felt conflicted throughout and
especially at the end, both guards and prisoners experience too (rationalises the continuation of
the experiment by saying it was a valuable experience)
What were the results - CORRECT ANSWER - Zimbardo found that behaviour regarding
social roles is primarily situational as opposed to dispositional.
Informed consent was there but breached, deception was high, psychological harm was
prominent in all participants as well as physical.
What were the main issues? - CORRECT ANSWER - Informed consent breached, no right
to withdraw, high deception, continued and permanent physical and psychological harm
What is the psychology of evil and what are some examples? - CORRECT ANSWER - Do
people become evil because of their personality or some other internal characteristic? Or is it
because of their environment?
Zimbardo Stanford Prison Experiment
Milgram obedience experiment
Lucifer effect: the power to hurt each other physically and psychologically
Holocaust
Abu Ghraib
What is dispositional attribution? - CORRECT ANSWER - Dispositional explanations
argue that personal characteristics and past experiences and tendencies of a subject are what
primarily influence a person's behaviour
Internal attribution: internal/personal factors influencing external behaviour
Behaviour is attributed to something within the control of the subject (abilities, emotional states,
beliefs, attitudes, personal traits, etc)
What is the reality of these ideas? - CORRECT ANSWER - The reality is that both
situational and dispositional factors influence any given behaviour at the same time
, What is situational attribution? - CORRECT ANSWER - Situational explanations argue
that the environment in which a subject is placed are what primarily influence their behaviour
Situational attribution: external factors influencing external behaviour
Circumstance (collection of friends, different social environments, peer pressure, etc)
Behaviour is attributed to factors beyond a person's control
Name a dispositional and situational reason for having a car crash - CORRECT
ANSWER - Dispositional - Being a bad driver, allowing themselves to be distracted,
choosing to be intoxicated
Situational - Bad weather conditions, obstruction of the road, surprise, fault of other drivers on
the road
Name a dispositional and situational reason for failing a test - CORRECT ANSWER -
Dispositional - Didn't study, didn't work well under pressure, emotionally unprepared
Situational - Conditions in the classroom, distracted by something, the teacher didn't cover topic
properly, pen didn't work
What is attribution theory? - CORRECT ANSWER - Attribution theory ultimately helps
people to better understand their behaviour and the behaviour of others
Attribution is the process by which people make insights and assumptions about the cause of
behaviour or cause of events
Attribution is how people explain what caused a behaviour or an event
Behaviour can be attributed to a person or situation or both
People are always trying to explain other people's behaviour
About the process that might be involved in perceiving other individuals, their behaviour, and
their personal qualities
Describe the two main issues with the attribution theory - CORRECT ANSWER - FAE:
(fundamental attribution error)
EXPERIMENT UPDATED ACTUAL Exam
Questions and CORRECT Answers
Briefly describe the key aim, method, and conclusion of the Stanford Prison Experiment
(Psychology of authority and abuse of power) - CORRECT ANSWER - Zimbardo and his
colleagues (1973) were interested in finding out whether the brutality reported among guards in
American prisons was due to the sadistic personalities of the guards (i.e., dispositional) or had
more to do with the prison environment (i.e., situational). In doing so he wanted to test the limits
of the attribution theory (by investigate how an institution affects the behaviour of an individual).
Young male college students volunteered to participate in a "psychological study of prison life"
for $15 a day were taken to a simulated prison in the basement of a psychology building (1973).
All of the participants were stable and had no symptoms of psychological disorders or physical
ailments. Participants were allocated a partner based on similar characteristics and mannerisms
(matched pairs), and each pair was assigned as a guard and prisoner by the flip of a coin (random
allocation). Within days the behaviour of participants began to change, prisoners showing signs
of stress and depression and guards becoming increasingly authoritarian and abusive.
What types of social power were at work? - CORRECT ANSWER - Legitimate and
reward social power
Coercive social behaviour - CORRECT ANSWER - from guards (who feel powerful and
therefore like they can punish the prisoners)
Normative conformity - CORRECT ANSWER - for guards wanting to reach the par of
other guards
Diendividuation of participants - CORRECT ANSWER - separate uniforms with glasses
etc (builds cohesion within group) Some guards start to lose identity when signing letters (sign as
prisoner No.) (Us vs Them)
,Cognitive dissonance - CORRECT ANSWER - Zimbardo felt conflicted throughout and
especially at the end, both guards and prisoners experience too (rationalises the continuation of
the experiment by saying it was a valuable experience)
What were the results - CORRECT ANSWER - Zimbardo found that behaviour regarding
social roles is primarily situational as opposed to dispositional.
Informed consent was there but breached, deception was high, psychological harm was
prominent in all participants as well as physical.
What were the main issues? - CORRECT ANSWER - Informed consent breached, no right
to withdraw, high deception, continued and permanent physical and psychological harm
What is the psychology of evil and what are some examples? - CORRECT ANSWER - Do
people become evil because of their personality or some other internal characteristic? Or is it
because of their environment?
Zimbardo Stanford Prison Experiment
Milgram obedience experiment
Lucifer effect: the power to hurt each other physically and psychologically
Holocaust
Abu Ghraib
What is dispositional attribution? - CORRECT ANSWER - Dispositional explanations
argue that personal characteristics and past experiences and tendencies of a subject are what
primarily influence a person's behaviour
Internal attribution: internal/personal factors influencing external behaviour
Behaviour is attributed to something within the control of the subject (abilities, emotional states,
beliefs, attitudes, personal traits, etc)
What is the reality of these ideas? - CORRECT ANSWER - The reality is that both
situational and dispositional factors influence any given behaviour at the same time
, What is situational attribution? - CORRECT ANSWER - Situational explanations argue
that the environment in which a subject is placed are what primarily influence their behaviour
Situational attribution: external factors influencing external behaviour
Circumstance (collection of friends, different social environments, peer pressure, etc)
Behaviour is attributed to factors beyond a person's control
Name a dispositional and situational reason for having a car crash - CORRECT
ANSWER - Dispositional - Being a bad driver, allowing themselves to be distracted,
choosing to be intoxicated
Situational - Bad weather conditions, obstruction of the road, surprise, fault of other drivers on
the road
Name a dispositional and situational reason for failing a test - CORRECT ANSWER -
Dispositional - Didn't study, didn't work well under pressure, emotionally unprepared
Situational - Conditions in the classroom, distracted by something, the teacher didn't cover topic
properly, pen didn't work
What is attribution theory? - CORRECT ANSWER - Attribution theory ultimately helps
people to better understand their behaviour and the behaviour of others
Attribution is the process by which people make insights and assumptions about the cause of
behaviour or cause of events
Attribution is how people explain what caused a behaviour or an event
Behaviour can be attributed to a person or situation or both
People are always trying to explain other people's behaviour
About the process that might be involved in perceiving other individuals, their behaviour, and
their personal qualities
Describe the two main issues with the attribution theory - CORRECT ANSWER - FAE:
(fundamental attribution error)
