Shared responsibilities and uniforms were seen in the Zimbardo’s Stanford prison experiment to enhance deindividuation. 1. Diener’s theory also applies to deindividuation, Diener argues that deindividuation occurs when self-awareness is blocked by environmental factors, such as increased arousal which is highly likely in prison due to large concentration of criminals in a confined space and strong group feeling which again is likely due to hazing rituals and the vast benefits inmates gain from being loyal to a gang. . In addition, Diener lists four consequences of deindividuation: poor self-monitoring of behaviours, reduced need for social approval, reduced rational thinking and reduced inhibitions against behaving impulsively. These consequences can lead to aggressive behaviour AO2) RESEARCH SUPPORT 2. Research supports the role of deindividuation in institutional aggression in Prisons, at Abu Graib ‘regular’ soldiers behaved extremely aggressively to the prisoners there.
This behaviour can be explained in terms of deindividuation as factors identified by Diener were particularly prevalent in this situation; because they were interrogating the prisons in a foreign prison the soldiers’ arousal increased and the USA army has a powerful group feeling. 2. However, dispositional factors may play a part in Abu Graib as not all soldiers carried out the violence and there was in fact a whistle blower. The role of dispositional factors fits with the importation model. Poole and Regoli found that pre-institutional factors of aggression help predict violence regardless of the institution, which uestion the role of deindividuation as a cause of institutional aggression. AO1) SITUATIONAL VARIABLES 3. Characteristics of an institution contribute to aggressive behavior. These can be physical or relates to rules and norms. Clothing and hierarchies of power contribute towards this. The deprivation model suggests that poor conditions contribute significantly to aggression in prisons. Zimbardo suggests that institutional aggression is initiated at a systematic level. The enabling of status seeking and hierarchies perpetuates violence in prisons AO2) RESEARCH SUPPORT THE ROLE OF SITUATIONAL VARIABLES 4.
The Term Paper on Obediance and Deindividuation
Most, if not all humans, have some ethics and morals, which help the individual make distinctions between right and wrong. Therefore, in most situations human beings behave in accordance with their morality. Studies on notions such as obedience to authority and deindividuation have shown that in some cases, an individual can be made to act in direct opposition to their morals and ethics. Studies ...
There is research which supports the role of situational variables leading to aggressive behavior. Gaes and Macuire suggest that overcrowding is a better predictor of prison violence than such things as staff:inmate ratio or criminal histories. However, a survey of prisons conducted by McCorkle et al found little evidence for a direct relationship between violence and deprived living conditions. Finlay 2003 concluded that violence in prisons were due to a combination of the importation and the deprivation model suggesting that situational variables does impact upon arggession in institutes but does not determine them.
IDA: SLT 5. There is clearly a complex number of factors that interrelate. SLT as an approach may encapsulate many of these. Within an institution a larger number of prisoners will have expectations of future outcomes that violence in prisons will have positive outcomes. A number of violent prisoners impact on the environment making it an aggressive environment which in turn impacts on the individuals. This is known as reciprocal determinism and will most likely lead to aggressive behaviour IDA: APPLICATIONS 6. Research into social change has real life applications.
The Review on Prison Violence
... aggressive, violent behavior aimed at protecting self or preventing retaliation (Gillespie, W., 2005). Age Age and prison violence ... study about how race impact prison violence partially support what I ... 2002). Prison Environment Prison environment exerts an influence on inmate misconduct, especially interpersonal violence (Blackburn ... the incarcerated, that is, prisoners’ behavior, has increased. High ...
David Wilson reasoned that if the most violence occurs in environments that are hot, noisy and overcrowded, then this can be avoided by reducing the three factors. Wilson set up two units for violent prisoners giving them a view outside, a less claustrophobic feel, along a local radio station to mask prison noise and reduced the heat. Theses changes virtually eradicated assaults on prison staff and other inmates. However, political pressures arguing ‘we can’t have the worst prisoners being given the best things’ led to the prison units changing their regimes and developing in a different direction.
