Inspired by an episode of Life, I did a little bit of reading on Wikipedia. What did I find in perusing that font of unassailable factoids? Scary, scary, infamous, scary stuff.
Item #1:
Stanford Prison Experiment
Take a dozen kids, separate them randomly into groups, and give all the power to one group (the "Guards"). The Guards become monsters, treating the "Prisoners" as subhuman, even though they were randomly assigned into their roles.
Item #2:
Milgram Experiment
Tell someone to push a button to induce an "electric shock" in another person. Tell the button-holder that they have to keep shocking, that the experiment requires that they keep shocking, that they must ignore the cries for mercy. See how far you can push someone before he refuses to submit to authority. Will he kill if you tell him to?
Item #3:
The Wave
Start with a little bit of discipline, add a dash of elitism, let ferment in a high school. Within days, the group will be so loyal, so fiercely devoted, that they'll report one another for not saluting properly. A recipe for Hitlerjugend, but in Palo freakin' Alto.
There's a lot of controversy about the research methodologies of these experiments, which leads to questions about the specifics of their conclusions. Fine. The underlying message, which is what matters, is that people are capable of terrible things. Even good people.
Only one in three subjects refuse to administer lethal levels of shock in the Milgram experiment, and rarely does anyone insist that the experiment be stopped altogether. A simple "please continue" from a gray-beard in a labcoat is enough to get most people to commit murder.
So, what makes us do good? Or perhaps, what prevents us from becoming monsters? Is it a commitment to humanitarianism? Is it the values of our forebears? Surely it's not just a sense of right and wrong.
I do hate to bring this up, but it's probably not even religion [Darley and Batson 1973] that keeps us honest.
It seems, as these studies lead us to conclude, that the situation dictates behavior more than the individual. Mob mentality rules. Authority persuades. Anonymity abides. The list goes on.
The solution, then, is striking in its counter-intuitiveness. One doesn't need religion, nor does one need an atheist's Humanism, nor even a particularly profound moral compass. All of these fail, when the situation applies the wrong pressure.
What matters, when push comes to shove, is the ability to resist that pressure. To stand out of a crowd. To refuse authority. To reject the relativistics of the situation in favor of your own sense of global right and wrong. What matters is personal strength.
Man oh man, that's a scary thought.
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3 comments:
I referenced both of the above studies in an open discussion with my thesis class last semester. It was shortly after the anniversary of the Virginia Tech shooting. My professors had brought it up as a way to plee with the class, "Please don't kill us!". Their concern, a class of so called 'crazy artists', said to take unpredictable flights of emotion. So this discussion went on and they proposed the question, "What makes someone a potential school shooter?". People had all sorts of explanations, mostly just concluding, "they're psycho" (whatever that means). Needless to say the answers offered were pretty awful. So then I mentioned the above examples, and explained that it is not a specific type of person (although some may have some predispositions rendering them more vulnerable) but the given situation. Essentially stress. Given enough stress (life stressors including basic needs, need for human closeness, etc.) people are likely to do things they might not otherwise do in a positive state of mind. For example: some schools are more stressful than others. The University of Chicago has one of the highest suicide rates of any American university. Those who attend the University of Chicago and commit suicide may not have done so had they gone to a less stressful school. But those who did were probably more easily effected by stress than their peers. So really I think its safe to conclude that a school shooter could potentially be just about anyone. Its something that profiling would be impossible to predict.
-Amy
I am familiar with study #1 and #2, pretty scary stuff.
I think that study #2 shows that humans are capable of incredible acts when beholden to the obedience of an authority figure.
Looking at the three studies together, it looks like placing your faith in humans personal strength would be misplacing your faith.
Rather, I would suggest, and attempt to follow, replacing the authority figure from a gray beard in a lab coat (or one's parents, their teachings, or your own inspiration), to an infallible, loving, and just authority figure. Then, perhaps, the incredible things that we would achieve as a society wouldn't be administering lethal doses of electrical shock, hoarding immense wealth, or taking advantage of our fellow humans to satisfy our desires, but would be developing loving communities, ending poverty and injustice, and serving those who have been disadvantaged.
I would be the last to assert that atrocities have never been committed out of devotion to a god, or God. However, I have witnessed many acts of selfless love committed out of inspiration and devotion to God, oftentimes against interests to their personal security.
Consider Romans 12: "Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will
For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the measure of faith God has given you. Just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. We have different gifts, according to the grace given us. If a man's gift is prophesying, let him use it in proportion to his faith. If it is serving, let him serve; if it is teaching, let him teach; if it is encouraging, let him encourage; if it is contributing to the needs of others, let him give generously; if it is leadership, let him govern diligently; if it is showing mercy, let him do it cheerfully.
Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves. Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. Share with God's people who are in need. Practice hospitality.
Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position. Do not be conceited.
Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everybody. If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God's wrath, for it is written: "It is mine to avenge; I will repay,"says the Lord. On the contrary:
"If your enemy is hungry, feed him;
if he is thirsty, give him something to drink.
In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head."
Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good."
you forgot the "blue eye versus brown eye" experiment. i actually did a quick and dirty version of that with my students--it was crazy how quickly they reacted and how quickly things deteriorated.
i think it's more than mob mentality--although clearly, that is an issue. i truly believe there is some inner need to establish oneself in a hierarchy. to know that you are higher, thus better than someone else--no matter what the means of determining that is: sports, gpa, salary, vehicle size. . .
in intro-ing the "hero unit" we talk about why people do the "moral or just" thing. . .read the book The Philosophy of Superheroes it's where I grabbed some excerpts for class.
perhaps we should continue this discussion in the beer tent this weekend. . .
xo
m
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