The Stanford Prison Experiment was massively influential. We just learned it was a fraud.

[Indigophoton]

The most famous psychological studies are often wrong, fraudulent, or outdated. Textbooks need to catch up.

The Stanford Prison Experiment, one of the most famous and compelling psychological studies of all time, told us a tantalizingly simple story about human nature.


The study took paid participants and assigned them to be “inmates” or “guards” in a mock prison at Stanford University. Soon after the experiment began, the “guards” began mistreating the “prisoners,” implying evil is brought out by circumstance. The authors, in their conclusions, suggested innocent people, thrown into a situation where they have power over others, will begin to abuse that power. And people who are put into a situation where they are powerless will be driven to submission, even madness.

The Stanford Prison Experiment has been included in many, many introductory psychology textbooks and is often cited uncritically. It’s the subject of movies, documentaries, books, television shows, and congressional testimony.

But its findings were wrong. Very wrong. And not just due to its questionable ethics or lack of concrete data — but because of deceit.

https://www.vox.com/platform/amp/20...rison-experiment-fraud-psychology-replication

 

[Samuel]

robbers cove, milgram, etc.

the kitty genovese case has also been challenged, in case it didn't mention that.

 

[Luther Blissett]

Eric Fromm in "The Anatomy of Human Destructiveness" (1973), had good criticisms of the experiment, and why it could and should not be used to tell a simple story of human nature.

This web page explains his criticisms well I think.
http://www.angelfire.com/or/sociologyshop/frozim.html

 

[Luther Blissett]

I've also found a twitter thread that might be useful and or interesting.

Linking to it via this site, as it makes it more readable.
https://threadreaderapp.com/thread/1006673891962613761.html

 

[Diwi9]

"In science, too often, the first demonstration of an idea becomes the lasting one — in both pop culture and academia. But this isn’t how science is supposed to work at all!"

 

[JaimeS]

I've also found a twitter thread that might be useful and or interesting.

Linking to it via this site, as it makes it more readable.
https://threadreaderapp.com/thread/1006673891962613761.html

Fascinating, thanks @Luther Blissett !

 

[Forbin]

The Stanford Prison Experiment was massively influential. We just learned it was a fraud.

"Seven years of college down the drain!"

 

[Subtropical Island]

https://www.vox.com/platform/amp/20...rison-experiment-fraud-psychology-replication

Nice article, thanks @Indigophoton! I’m glad I’m on a day I could read the original.
Pleased to think/imagine/hope that lack of replication in psychology is being addressed in earnest too

 

[Forbin]

The most famous psychological studies are often wrong, fraudulent, or outdated. Textbooks need to catch up.

The author of the Stanford Prison Experiment was actually the co-author of the introductory textbook used in my college psychology course. According to Wikipedia, it's a very widely used textbook, but I can't recall if it discusses the prison experiment. It and the Milgram Experiment were certainly discussed by my professor though.

 

[James Morris-Lent]

An essay relating the Milgram Experiment to international relations was included in a text for my introductory international politics class.
At least in international relations there's little pretense that everybody isn't just guessing...