Stanford Prison Experiment Research Paper

The Stanford Prison Experiment was created by a psychology teacher named Phillip Zimbardo. There was 9 prisoners and 9 guards. Those that were chosen were arrested one morning and taken to the station where they were blindfolded. An ad was put in the local paper asking for volunteers for this project. This experiment was to see the psychological effects of being in prison. After reviewing over 70 applicants, they narrowed it down to twenty-four candidates. The candidates were college students from the United States and Canada, they also earned $15 a day. They were separated in two different groups labeled guards and prisoners. On the first day, there were no differences between the boys. Zimbardo used the basement in Stanford’s psychology department and called it the “Stanford County Jail.” The corridor was called the “yard” the prisoners were allowed to walk, eat, or exercise. The cells were created out of laboratory rooms. The doors were replaced with steel bars. There
was a closet which was called the “hole” this room was used for solitary confinement. The cells were secretly bugged, this was so what the prisoners discussed was monitored. It was also for them to give public announcements. Each of the prisoners were searched and stripped naked. They had to wear a uniform which consisted of a dress or smock with their ID number. Guards wore khaki, whistles around their necks, a billy club, and glasses to cover their eyes from showing emotion. It was becoming more like a prison. The first day was calm they were all understanding their roles. By the second day, the prisoners were acting out. Their ID numbers were torn off along with their stocking caps. They moved their beds in front of the door to barricade themselves in. The guards were angry and frustrated. The morning guards felt that the night guards were too lenient. The guards called in the other three guards to help control the situation. They used fire extinguishers to get the prisoners away from the door. The prisoners were punished for what they did. Parents were allowed to visit to make it seem more realistic. At that point, things changed to impress the parents and other guest. The boys were allowed to get cleaned up and have a good meal. Many parents were concerned with how skinny their son was becoming, but we reassured they were going to be fine. After the first thirty-six hours a prisoner started to go crazy, they thought he was faking it to be released, but found out it was serious. Then the guards overheard a few prisoners discussing an escape plan. The plan did not succeed and changes were made. Over the course of the experiment a priest was asked to come in a speak to the prisoners. He suggested that the boys get a lawyer to help them get out of the prison. He even contacted some of the parents. The experiment started to go wrong here. While reading you see how there was not really control over what happened. There was no set rules for either side. A proper experiment has to have directions and a purpose. Also, twenty-four is not a large enough group to prove a point about behavior among prisoners and guards.

This experiment showed us that people do change over time when they are confined. The guards had more power over the prisoners due to their title. The prisoners could have been stronger or more powerful than the guards. When the prisoners acted out the guards reacted by using violence. Why were the guards not properly trained on what to do like real life guards? They had the freedom to do whatever they wanted to the prisoners. Why was there no supervisor to keep everyone in line? Sure the camera were there, but they were not corrected for doing wrong. Once the experiment started the prisoners and guards gradually changed over time some faster than others. Their behavior started to change for the worse. They would act out and be someone they never knew they would turn into. The boys started to go crazy, some were having mental breakdowns others were crying and acting out of rage. Were the results what Zimbardo wanted? Did it prove the point he was trying to make?

In Lord of the Flies, the boys were stranded on an island separated into two groups who come together just to break apart again.
In the beginning, they boys are still acting like a civilization. There is a leader and rules it seems off to a good start for survival. Then things take a turn for the worse. The boys start acting out and turning against each other. Rules were broken and it was chaos. There was always competition between Ralph and Jack. Throughout the book, they are slowly falling from a civilization. In my opinion, there was no hope from the beginning for them to stay in a civilization. The boys were too young to divide the rules properly and come to an agreement. It relates to the experiment because in the beginning there is no differences among the groups they come together for some time in hopes of getting rescued. With a few disagreements it slowly starts to break them apart. If the boys followed the rules they set in the beginning they may have had a better chance at
surviving.