Stanford Prison Experiment

The Stanford Prison Experiment was a study conducted in 1971, which researched the psychological effects of becoming a prisoner and prison guard. Twenty-four students were selected to take on randomly assigned roles of prisoners and guards in a mock prison. The participants adapted to their roles well beyond expectations, as the guards enforced authoritative measures and subjected some of the prisoners to psychological torture. The students were placed in a different life and in a different environment. This caused them to change drastically to adapt in this new life style. This experiment was a good example of how much a change of landscape can change a person in such a short period of time.