Summary Of The Stanford Prison Experiment By Philip Zimbardo

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Delving into the ethics behind the Stanford Prison Experiment done by Philip Zimbardo, it has come to the public’s attention the questionability as to whether or not the experiment had followed traditional scientific manner. If the research does not follow ethical guidelines, then there is reason to believe the Stanford Prison Experiment was corrupt due to the lack information to participants, and absence of human morals Mr. Zimbardo portrayed during the time of his findings. Ethical rules provide the guidelines used to identify what is wrong and right. These decisions occur with the daily lives of average people, influencing the way they interact with the world. In the Prison Experiment, participants were not fully disclosed information about the study, resulting in stressful measures and ultimately traumatizing those who took part. …show more content…

They would receive pay for playing their given roles, unaware of the issues to come about. The information that Zimbardo provided to the students was a contract which they had to sign guaranteeing they would be served small portions of food, and shelter. Thus, the information on what to except during the course of the study period was left out. Although, this was done purposely, if the participants weren’t blind to the study, the experiment would be ruined. This breaks ethical code, going against the need for informed consent, the researcher must allow participants the knowledge of any foreseeable events. This includes their right to withdraw, experiment procedure, along with the study’s purpose. Looking at specifics, the participants who fell into the prisoner category did not receive the promised number of meals they signed for. What the contract didn’t account for is the fact that the prisoners would have to complete dehumanizing tasks in order to