For a long time, psychologists have been deeply studying how we look at the world and what can inspire our behavior. They have made great progress in uncovering the mystery. Because there are many contents, Psychological Sauce decided to introduce this 10 classic psychological research into two parts, hoping to help you have a further understanding of psychology.
1. We all have evil forces.
The prison experiment of Stanford University 197 1 year, which studies how social environment affects people's behavior, can be said to be the most famous experiment in the history of psychology. Psychologist Philip Zimbardo led the researchers to build a "mock prison" in the basement of Stanford Mental Hospital, and selected 24 college students (with no criminal record and mental health) to play the roles of prisoners and prison guards respectively. Then, the researchers used hidden cameras to observe prisoners (they had to stay in their cells for 24 hours) and guards (they worked in shifts for 8 hours).
However, what happened next surprised everyone. Due to the abuse of prison guards (in some cases, they even tortured psychologically) and the extreme emotional stress and anxiety shown by prisoners, the experiment, which was scheduled to last for two weeks, had to be stopped after six days.
Zimbardo told American Scientist magazine: "Prison guards have escalated their attacks on prisoners. They stripped them naked, covered their heads with bags, and finally made them engage in more and more insulting behaviors. " "Six days later, I must end. All this is because I am out of control-I really can't sleep at night and I don't worry about what the guards will do to the prisoners. "
This experiment reveals an interview with the devil who lives in the heart. He is uglier than we thought.
2. Is what you saw true?
Do you know what is happening around you? You may not be as clear as you think. During the period of 1998, researchers from Harvard University and Kent State University conducted targeted tests on pedestrians in university campuses to determine people's understanding of the surrounding environment.
In the experiment, an actor walked up to a pedestrian and asked for directions. When pedestrians were indicating the direction, two other actors carried a big wooden door between the actors and pedestrians, completely blocking their sight for several seconds. During that time, the actor who asked for directions was replaced by another actor, with different height and figure, and another suit, hairstyle and voice. A full half of the participants didn't notice the replacement.
This experiment shows the phenomenon of "blindness" for the first time, which shows how sure we are of what we get from any given visual scene-and it seems that we rely on memory and pattern recognition far more than we think.
It is difficult to delay satisfaction, but when you delay satisfaction, you will be more successful.
In the late 1960s, Stanford University conducted a famous experiment to test preschool children's ability to resist the temptation of instant gratification, and gained some insights on willpower and self-discipline. In the experiment, four-year-old children were arranged in a room alone. There is a marshmallow on the plate in front of them. They were told to eat it now, or wait until the researchers came back in 15 minutes, so that they could eat one more marshmallow.
According to Time magazine, although most children say they will wait, they often try to resist and then give in and eat the candy before the researchers come back. Children who successfully delay 15 minutes usually use avoidance strategies, such as turning around or covering their eyes.
Experiments show that the behavior of these children implies a very important point: those children who can delay satisfaction are much less likely to be obese, take drugs or have behavioral problems in adolescence, and will be more successful in later life.
We can feel a strong moral impulse.
196 1 year, Yale university psychologist Stanley? Milgram conducted a famous study to test the extent to which people will obey authority figures when asked to hurt others, and the fierce internal conflict between personal morality and the obligation to obey authority figures.
Milgram wanted to learn more about how Nazi war criminals committed ulterior crimes in the Holocaust through this experiment. To this end, he tested two participants, one considered as a "teacher" and the other as a "learner". Every time a student answers a wrong question, the teacher is asked to give the student an electric shock (in fact, the student didn't get an electric shock). The recording played by milgram sounds as if the learner is in pain. If the "teacher" tells the experimenter to stop, the experimenter will stimulate him to continue. In the first experiment, 65% of the participants experienced the painful last 450 volt electric shock (very strong click), although they were very entangled and contradictory when doing so.
Although this study is usually regarded as a warning to blindly obey authority, Scientific American magazine recently re-examined the study and thought that the result was more like a profound moral conflict.
Reporter Michael Shermer wrote: "The moral nature of human beings includes the tendency of sympathy, kindness and kindness to our compatriots and group members, as well as the tendency of exclusion, cruelty and evil to others in the tribe." "This shocking experiment reveals not blind obedience, but contradictory moral tendencies in the heart."
We are easily corrupted by power.
There is a psychological reason behind this, that is, those in power sometimes show a self-righteous attitude of disrespect for others. A study published in Psychological Review in 2003 divided students into three groups and wrote a short essay together.
Two students were asked to write this paper, while the other student was asked to evaluate this paper and decide how much each student would get paid. In their work, a researcher brought a plate of five biscuits. Although usually the last biscuit is never eaten, the "boss" almost always eats the fourth biscuit-and eats it casually with an open mouth.