The Friday cluster - 25 August,2023
Πιλοτικά η έκδοση αυτή του substack κ του Friday Cluster σας σερβίρεται στα αγγλικά κατόπιν αιτήματος αρκετών φίλων από το εξωτερικό
Experiment I’m considering
The Stanford Prison Experiment conducted by Philip Zimbardo in 1971 is one of the most well-known psychological studies.
Background:
Philip Zimbardo, a psychologist at Stanford University, wanted to investigate how readily people would conform to the roles of guard and prisoner in a role-playing exercise that simulated prison life.
Method:
Zimbardo converted a basement of the Stanford University psychology building into a mock prison.
Participants were 24 male college students who were chosen for their psychological stability and health.
They were randomly assigned to either the role of prisoner or guard.
The "prisoners" were arrested at their homes, blindfolded, strip-searched, and given a uniform and number.
The "guards" were given uniforms, batons, and mirrored sunglasses and were instructed not to physically harm the prisoners but were told they could create feelings of boredom and frustration.
Key Findings:
Rapid Assimilation into Roles: Both guards and prisoners quickly adapted to their roles, beyond Zimbardo's expectations. The guards became abusive and authoritarian, while the prisoners became passive and highly distressed.
Abuse of Power: Some guards began to exhibit sadistic behavior, subjecting prisoners to psychological torture, including humiliation. They enjoyed the power they had over the prisoners.
Loss of Identity: Prisoners began to show signs of extreme stress, depression, and learned helplessness. Some had to be released early due to severe emotional and psychological reactions.
Deindividuation: The guards, with their mirrored sunglasses and uniforms, seemed to lose their identities and took on their roles to an extreme, which contributed to their abusive behavior.
Termination: The experiment, originally intended to last two weeks, was terminated after only six days due to the extreme reactions and behaviors of the participants.
Assumptions and Implications:
Situational Factors Over Personal Factors: The experiment suggested that situational and systemic factors (like the prison environment) could have a stronger influence on behavior than individual personality traits. Ordinary people could commit atrocities when placed in certain environments.
Loss of Personal Responsibility: When individuals are in a group, they may feel less personal responsibility for their actions, leading to behavior they might not engage in as individuals.
Ethical Concerns: The study has been widely criticized for its ethical implications. The participants were subjected to severe emotional and psychological stress, raising questions about the ethics of conducting such experiments.
Generalizability: Some critics argue that the findings might not be generalizable to real-world settings, as the conditions were artificial and the sample size was small.
The Stanford Prison Experiment highlighted the power of authority, conformity, and situational factors in influencing human behavior. It remains a cautionary tale about the ethical considerations in psychological research and the depths to which individuals can go when placed in positions of power and authority.
TEDx talk I’m reviewing
“Your Body Language Shapes Who You Are" is a renowned TED talk by Amy Cuddy. She discusses the power of nonverbal communication, specifically body language, and how it influences not only how others perceive us but also how we perceive ourselves. She introduces the concept of "power posing" and presents research suggesting that adopting powerful, expansive postures can affect our feelings, physiology, and behavior in positive ways.
Key Points:
Two-Way Street of Body Language: While our nonverbal cues (body language) communicate information to others, they also send feedback to our brains, affecting our self-perception and emotions.
High Power vs. Low Power Poses: Cuddy describes high power poses as expansive and open (e.g., standing tall with hands on hips) and low power poses as contractive and closed (e.g., hunching over, crossing arms).
Power Posing Experiment: Cuddy and her team conducted an experiment where participants adopted either high-power or low-power poses for two minutes. Those in the high-power pose group experienced increased testosterone (a dominance hormone) and decreased cortisol (a stress hormone), while the opposite was true for the low-power pose group.
Fake It Till You Become It: Cuddy shares a personal story of feeling like an "impostor" in her professional life and how she overcame this feeling. She suggests that even if we don't feel confident, we can "fake it" by adopting confident body language until we genuinely feel more confident.
Real-World Implications: The way we hold our bodies can impact our chances in situations like job interviews. By adopting powerful poses before high-stakes situations, we can change our body chemistry and potentially the outcome.
Power Posing Benefits: Adopting power poses can increase feelings of confidence, reduce stress, and improve performance in challenging situations.
Universal Nature of Power Poses: Cuddy mentions that the concept of expansive postures signifying power and dominance is not just cultural but is also seen in the animal kingdom.
In essence, Amy Cuddy's talk emphasizes the profound impact of our body language on our psychology and physiology. By being mindful of our postures and adopting "power poses," we can positively influence our mindset and outcomes in various situations.
Another TEDx talk I’m watching
"Own Your Behaviours, Master Your Communication, Determine Your Success" by Louise Evans:
The Five Chairs Concept: Louise introduces the idea of five chairs, each representing different behaviors and attitudes we bring into the world. These chairs serve as a tool to help us become more conscious of our actions and reactions.
(Note the similarity to the internal family systems approach where we need to identify and name the different parts of ourselves)
The Red Chair (Jackal): This chair represents judgment, blame, complaints, and gossip. It's where we often misbehave, especially by judging others. In this chair, we focus on what's wrong with others rather than what's right.
The Yellow Chair (Hedgehog): When in this chair, we feel vulnerable and tend to judge ourselves. It represents self-doubt, fears of rejection, disappointment, and failure. It's where we play the victim and believe that no one cares for us.
The Green Chair (Meerkat): This chair symbolizes mindfulness and awareness. It's where we pause, observe, and become curious about our surroundings and situations. It represents the choice between reacting impulsively or responding thoughtfully.
The Blue Chair (Dolphin): In this chair, we become self-aware, assertive (but not aggressive), and powerful. It's about knowing oneself, setting boundaries, and speaking one's truth.
The Purple Chair (Giraffe): This chair embodies empathy, compassion, and understanding. It's about putting our egos aside, listening to others, and caring for them. It emphasizes the importance of staying connected and understanding different perspectives.
Real-life Application: Louise shares a personal story about a night out with her partner's daughter. She faced a moment of judgment when the young lady was on her phone during a concert. However, instead of reacting negatively, Louise chose to understand (shows access to self - not easy) and was pleasantly surprised by the young lady's engagement and appreciation of the evening.
The Power of Choice: Louise emphasizes that our daily challenge is to balance our time between the different chairs, aiming to spend more time in the chairs that promote positive behaviors. She quotes Viktor Frankl, highlighting the power of choice in determining our attitudes regardless of circumstances.
Conclusion: Louise encourages the audience to adopt the Five Chairs concept in their daily lives, teaching it to children and incorporating it into workplaces. She emphasizes the importance of making conscious behavioral choices to improve our relationships and overall quality of life.
The talk concludes with a call to action: to commit to making our homes, workplaces, and the world a better place, one behavior at a time.
Much love,
P.
Links of the TEDx Talks please?