Science on Screen®: The Stanford Prison Experiment with Dr. Jennifer Bazar
May 30, 2024, 5:30 PM. Tickets can be purchased through The Nightlight.
Location: The Nightlight, 30 N. High St. Akron, OH
Throughout the academic year, the Science on Screen® series creatively pairs screenings of classic, cult, science fiction, and documentary films with lively presentations by notable experts from the world of science and technology.
An initiative of the COOLIDGE CORNER THEATRE, with major support from the ALFRED P. SLOAN FOUNDATION.
About the Presentation
The Ethics of Human Research
The Stanford Prison Experiment is one of the best-known experiments in psychology’s history – and one of the most notorious. As a result, there is a lot of myth and outright misinformation surrounding it. Jennifer Bazar’s presentation will provide an overview of what we know, focusing on why a mock prison was constructed at Stanford University, what the students experienced during their time as either “guards” or “prisoners,” and why the experiment was cut short. She will then look at the aftermath of the experiment and how it took on the persona of “research gone awry.” Key to all of this is how the Stanford Prison Experiment has been used to debate the ethics of human research since the 1970s, a discussion that has seen resurgences over time due in part to public reflections by those directly involved in the experiment as well as events such as the abuse of detainees in the Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq.
About the Presenter
Jennifer Bazar is the Assistant Director of the Cummings Center for the History of Psychology. She holds a doctorate in psychology, with a specialization in the history of psychology. Jennifer directs the content development for exhibits and public programming at the National Museum of Psychology and teaches in The University of Akron’s Museums & Archives Certificate and Public Humanities Certificate programs. She is a passionate supporter of public history and community engagement and was recently named an Akron Community Engaged Scholar (ACE) by the Experiential Learning Center at The University of Akron. You’re most likely to run into her either leading a tour through the National Museum of Psychology or hosting a meeting of the Akron Postcard Club.
About the Film
The Stanford Prison Experiment (2015) is based on the actual events that took place in 1971 when Stanford professor Dr. Philip Zimbardo created what became one of the most shocking and famous social experiments of all time..
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