Conflict Between Prison Guards And Prisoners

Often, when we hear the term 'ethical' or 'moral' we think of what is considered 'right' or 'wrong'. Many people learn about ethics and moral growing up, whether it be at schools, hospitals or any social settings. For instance, as we naturally mature, we tend to acquire our sense of right and wrong during childhood. Many people would determine whether a research is ethical or not by informed consent because it is a major ethical concern when conducting research. This also includes keeping subjects away from harm, respect for anonymity and privacy and providing the right to withdraw. One example that a few people would argue about a research being ethical or not would be the testing on animals. This type of research has always been under debate for numerous reasons. Many argue that the harm committed against animals is not morally correct and should be banned because it is inhumane to test certain products on helpless animals. It is also argued that alongside the harsh testing done on animals, conducting research/testing on animal is not ethical because it causes pain and suffering to the experimental animals. On the other hand, others argue that animal research has always had an essential role in many scientific and medical advances of the past century. Till this day, it still continues to aid our understanding of various diseases. (EMBO: Festing 2007).

Meanwhile, the RDS (Research Defense Society) has considered that the use of animals in research can be ethically and morally justified for multiple reasons. The benefits of animal research have always been immense and there would be severe consequences for public health and medical research if it were abandoned. For instance, animal testing has always helped to ensure the safety of new treatments for humans; therefore, animal testing is morally and ethically correct. (Festing 2007)

Additionally, there were many types of research and experiments conducted that are still heavily debated on whether it was ethical or not. This leads to the discussion of the infamous experiment otherwise known as 'The Stanford Prison Experiment'. It is notorious for being one of the most controversial studies in social psychology, which I have learned about in my Intro Psychology class. This experiment took place in the year of 1971 and the main purpose of the social psychology experiment was to focus on the psychological effects of perceived power and authority. This is an example of a past experiment that will no longer be able to be conducted because of its immorality. The main focus of this experiment was to study the causes of conflict between prison guards and prisoners. Within the experiment, 24 males were randomly assigned as either the role of the prisoner or the prison guard and were set up in a model prison in the basement of Stanford University. It soon became obvious that the guards were using their authority to their advantage, which led to them enforcing harsh and cruel measures to the prisoners. This experiment illustrated how having immense power and authority can make an individual remorseless and cruel. As time passed by, these guards had emotionally distressed and humiliated the prisoners, which led their amusements to become sexual, sadistic and aggressive. The treatment of the prisoners became so cruel that it resulted in the experiment to abruptly end after six days. The Stanford Prison Experiment would not be allowed to be conducted due to its violation of ethics including the violations of participants to withdraw, informed consent and failing to protect participants of psychological and physical harm. ( Perry 2018). The prisoner's dignity and privacy were gone upon arrival when they were tripped, dehumanized and forced to perform sexual tasks. This experiment illustrates how humans can spiral steadily downward through humanity's worst impulses.