Philip Zimbardo devised a simulated prison and randomly assigned college students to serve as prisoners or guards. This experiment best illustrated the impact of

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The Stanford Prison Experiment, conducted by Philip Zimbardo, was designed to test the impact of role-playing on attitudes and behavior. Randomly assigned college students were assigned to play the role of prisoners or guards in a simulated prison environment. The experiment demonstrated how quickly individuals can embrace their assigned roles and how these roles can influence their behavior and attitudes. Guards became increasingly authoritarian and abusive, while prisoners became passive and showed signs of extreme stress and psychological distress. The experiment illustrates the power of situational factors in shaping human behavior.

Philip Zimbardo Devised a Simulated Prison and Randomly Assigned College