Which of the following best characterizes the early period of the experiment?

Question

Prisoners and guards resisted their roles because they thought the experiment was foolish.

Subjects quickly became affected by their power or lack of power.

Prisoners began to plan to overthrow the guards.

Prisoners and guards quickly began to taunt one another.

Answer 1

The statement that best characterizes the early period of the experiment is: Subjects quickly became affected by their power or lack of power.

In the early stages of the Stanford prison experiment, participants quickly adapted to their assigned roles, with guards exhibiting authoritarian behaviors and prisoners feeling the effects of their subordinate status. This dynamic was evident almost immediately as the power imbalance led to significant psychological changes.