Zimbardo's defense of Milgram and the ethical controversies of the Stanford Prison Experiment

Philip Zimbardo staunchly defended Stanley Milgram's research on obedience to authority, inspired by the atrocities of Nazi Germany, while condemning critics for dismissing Milgram's findings. However, he overlooked lessons from Milgram's ethical controversies that could have mitigated criticism of his own Stanford Prison Experiment (SPE) (Zimbardo, 1971; 2007).

Recent analyses (Perry, 2018) highlight methodological and ethical flaws in Milgram's work, such as participant coercion, suggesting Zimbardo's defense may have been overly optimistic. This sets the stage for understanding Zimbardo's SPE, which explored how roles and group dynamics shape social behavior, though its ethical lapses have ignited ongoing debate.