| Imagine reading a newspaper advertisement requesting participants in an experiment.
The experiment will measure memory and learning.
It will take one hour and pay \1100.
The site of the study is Tohoku University's Medical School.
Whether for the money, the experience or because it sounds interesting, you decide to participate. |
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When you arrive on campus you find the laboratory and encounter a stern looking experimenter in a white coat.
Also present is a pleasent, friendly person who is also volunteering for the experiment. |
The experimenter explains that the experiment will examine the role of punishment in learning, and that one of the two volunteers will be a "teacher" and one will be the "learner". |
The two of you draw lots to determine which role you will play in the experiment.
You win the draw and become the "teacher"; the other volunteer is made the "learner".
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The three of you move to the room next door where the "learner" is strapped into a chair. |
- The experimenter explains that this is to prevent excessive movement during the experiment.
- It is easy to see, though, that the learner could not escape from the chair even if he tried.
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| Next, an electrode is attached to the learners arm, and conductive gel is applied to the electrode.
- The experimenter explains that this is to prevent burning and blisters.
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| Both you and the learner are told that:
- the electrode is attached to a electric shock generator in the other room
- the electric shocks will serve as punishment for incorrect responses
- the learner asks the experimenter if "the shocks will hurt"
- the experimenter replies: "although the shocks will be painful, they cause no permanent tissue damage"
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| You leave the learner in his room and return to the other room.
There the experimenter shows you the shock generator. |
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| The generator has 30 switches
Each is labelled with a voltage ranging from 15 up to 450 volts
Each switch also has a rating, ranging from "slight shock" to "danger: severe shock"
The final two switches are labelled "XXX" |
| The experimenter tells you that your role is to teach the learner a simple paired-association task
However, you must punish him for any incorrect response
For every incorrect response the voltage must be increased by 15 volts
It is your job to increase the voltage one switch each time there is an error
To check whether the generator is functioning correctly,the experimenter administers a 15 volt shock to you
- the voltage is enough to make your arm tingle
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Now the experiment begins
- The learner finds the task difficult and makes numerous errors.
- Each error results in a higher voltage shock than the previous one.
- To begin with the shocks are weak, but soon they become more intense.
- At 75 volts you can hear the learner "grunt" through the wall.
- The same thing happens at 90 and 105 volts.
- At 120 volts the learner says the shocks are getting painful.
- You know this is true because you can hear him through the wall.
- At 150 volts he cries out: "get me out of here! I refuse to go on!".
- His protests continue as the voltage gets higher and higher.
- Perhaps you think you should stop the test.
- However, when you question whether you should be continuing, the experimenter tells you to keep going. Among the reasons he gives are:
- "you can't stop now",
- "he is getting paid to do this experiment"
- "the experiment depends on your continuing compliance"
- He may even say "you have no choice"
- If you continue to voice resistence, the experimenter will tell you he assumes full responsibility for shocking the learner at such a high level.
As the shocks increase the learner screams out "I can't stand the pain!"
At 300 volts he begins pounding on the wall and demands to be let out.
After 330 volts there is no longer any noise from the learner.
At this point the experimenter tells you that the learner's failure to respond should be interpreted as an incorrect response
You are told to continue increasing the shock level for each non-response.
The experiment ends only after:
- the highest shock level is reached,
- the learning task is completed, or
- you no longer agree to participate and walk out of the experiment
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