Archive for April, 2014

Class Discussion Information — Week 15

Posted in Class Meetings on April 19, 2014|

IV. BBC Prison Study (2001)

In 2001, the British Broadcasting Corporation  (BBC) sponsored a “conceptual replication” of the Stanford Prison Study and, although they obtained similar results in some respects, there were some important differences when their results were compared to the 1971 study.

V. Milgram — Obedience to Authority

Instructions to Participants

  1. Would the subject still get paid even if he decided not to participate in the experiment?
  2. Who was the actual subject: the Experimenter, the Teacher, or the Learner?
  3. What was the subject told about the purpose of the study?
  4. Why was the subject deceived about the true purpose of the study?
  5. Why do you think the Teacher was given a shock before the experiment began?
  6. What was the Learner asked to learn?

Fully Obedient Participant

At the start of the video, the Teacher seems to be laughing. Milgram mentioned that a small percentage of Teachers expressed nervous laughter: they laughed because they were upset, not because they thought the situation was funny.

  1. Does the Teacher seem concerned about what’s happening with the Learner?
  2. Does the Teacher realize that the shocks might harm the Learner?
  3. About three minutes after the start of the video, the Teacher seems like he might stop. What does the Experimenter say that persuades him to continue with the experiment?
  4. A little over six minutes after the start of the video, what does the Teacher say that shows that he realizes the shocks are harmful?
  5. When the Learner refuses to answer, what does the Experimenter tell the Teacher to do?
  6. Why does the Teacher eventually conclude that the Learner is either unconscious or dead?
  7. Most people, at that point, would have rushed into the other room to help the Learner. Why doesn’t the Teacher do this?
  8. What does the Experimenter tell the Teacher to do once he reaches the top shock level (450 Volts)?
  9. At 11 minutes and 52 seconds after the start of the video, what does the Teacher say that shows that he doesn’t feel responsible for harming the Learner?

VI. BBC Horizon (2009): Replication of Milgram’s Standard Condition

Nine out of the 12 subjects (75%) went all the way to the end of the shock generator.

VII. Social and Cultural Factors in Mental Illness

Sybil: A Brilliant Hysteric?

60 Minutes: MPD

VIII. Automatic Versus Controlled Processes

Stroop Test

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