Tag: psychology 101

Psychology 101: The Stanford Prison Experiment

What happens when you put good people in an evil place? Does humanity win over evil, or does evil triumph? Philip Zimbardo, a psychologist and a professor at Stanford University posed the same exact question in 1971, thereby leading to what is known as The Stanford Prison Experiment (SPE). The experiment was originally created to uncover the truth about human nature, a more in-depth look on what our true ambitions were, what really drove us. Zimbardo began by choosing 24 volunteers, making 12 of them “guards” and the other 12 “prisoners”.  They were taken to a prison simulation, a fabricated illusion to make the volunteers feel as if they were actually in prison. He began by  giving the guards ultimate power and left the prisoners vulnerable. This evidently led to a distinction of power between the two groups. 45 years later, people still ponder the  question that drove the experiment to its end. Was this study ethically right?  The Stanford Prison Experiment was not ethically right, it stripped volunteers of emotion temporarily, forcing them to turn against each other and was physically harmful to the majority of the participants. 

Psychology and Marketing of Eating: Why Do We Eat the Way We Do?

The overwhelming amount of commercials, advertisements, and promotional campaigns that Americans are bombarded with is astronomical, to the point it is affecting their dietary habits. As the turn from a nomadic lifestyle switched to one with steady food supplies and surplus, history of mankind derailed and took an entirely different course, one that would later involve corporations utilizing marketing communications to influence their consumers. 

Psychology 101 and the Brain: Stress – Definition, Symptoms, and Health Effects of the Fight-or-Flight Response

The “fight or flight” response is in response to impending danger. For example, the stress responses kicks in when seeing a snake slithering towards you or running away from a bear in the woods. Homeostasis is the normal equilibrium of body function, so stress can be induced by belief that homeostasis might be interrupted. In this guide, we share the effects of stress on the human body system, psychology, immune system, and long-term health effects of chronic stress.

Psychology 101: Crowd Psychology and The Theory of Gustave Le Bon

Crowds are often overlooked as a segment of psychology. Most people would like to say that they are independent and trail away from what others do, however, much goes unnoticed when talking about the human behaviour of an individual when placed in a large mass of others. This type of psychology becomes a unique aspect of how one may think purely based off of the interests and situation of a crowd. There are several theories and the concept itself plays a large role in several real-world situations with effective consequences.

Social Psychology 101: Psychology in Social Roles Today

What makes a good person do a bad thing? Why do people partake in events when they know what they are doing is contrary to their own moral beliefs?

Group mentality and conformity play major roles in human behavior. We explore the Stanford Prison Experiment, Asch Conformity Experiment, and the social roles these psychological concepts play in history and today.