A Change of Mind....

Hello fellow Geeklies!!

I really did aim to write on this here blog every week different topics for discussion, but then I realised that there are some weeks where life just gets in the way - so instead of me piping on about Social Constructionism (which is really interesting and when I have the time to put together a debate with references and decent arguments, I will defiantly post it here!!) I thought instead that I would write this week about how I have fully submerged myself into the Stanford Prison Experiment.

But first, as you may have noticed, the blog has had a lovely facelift and even though it seems a little dark - I couldn't NOT have the beautiful image from the Human Connectome Project as my background.  The image that I have here shows the tiny minuscule but amazingly powerful Neural networks for the spinal chord, the brain stem, the Corpus Callosum (this is the part that looks like a bridge between the two brain hemispheres) and then extending into the Cerebral Cortex.  When I was first made aware of the Human Connectome Project I was astounded at the idea neuroscientists were able to channel the networks of neurons - so imagine how I felt when I discovered that these channels where being mapped! If you haven't checked this out before, then please please give the below link a look - defiantly worth it!

http://www.humanconnectomeproject.org


So, as I mentioned before getting carried away with the brain (check out the link if you haven't already done so!) I am very aware that when I go back to uni in September I will be in my final year.....which if corse means the dissertation!! This is something that I personally find quite daunting....

So I thought that a possible way to relieve this mountain of work that I will (oneway) have to climb, was to take baby steps and pick one of my many books, read it and make little annotations as I go along.

So the first book that I picked was:

PHILLIP ZIMBARDO: THE LUCIFER EFFECT

Im not all of the way through this book (as it is a little hefty at: 551 pages, that includes the index and notes section) but I am defiantly happy with the progress that I have made.  One of the very first blogs that I did here was a TEDx video of Zimbardo talking about the Lucifer Effect - this book and that video is the result of the Stanford Prison Study (1973) and the explanations behind the occurrences that happened.

In reading this book so far, what strikes me is the level at which the Guards and the Prisoners lost their personal identity - the social norm of their given roles led to such extreme behaviour (guards stripped prisoners naked, showed both physical and verbal abuse) that it was then accepted as the way to behave when in this role.  Even Zimbardo (who was the Prison Superintendent) became so involved and lost sight of his true role as the lead experimanter that he passed the idea that a previously released inmate (8612) could be captured and imprisoned for being released under false pretences (Zimbardo believed rumours that 8612 was planning a riot that would break free the other prisoners - Zimbardo became so obsessed with this, that he moved all of the prisoners into a storage room whilst he sat for 3 hours waiting for the riot to start). It is defiantly safe to say that there are many aspects of Social Psychology theories within this study, including, Groupthink, Deindividuation and The Social Identity Theory - just to name a few.

I am really enjoy reading this book - reading the honest truth of Zimbardo's actions when given this responsibility - but it has also opened a can of worms in my mind ---would people react this way in roles now? Are people more likely to stand up for what they believe? I am aware of the replica BBC Prison Study that occurred a few years back (2006) by Haslam & Reicher but I can't help but think that this was more of a publicity stunt for TV entertainment then a Social Experiment to be taken seriously - don't get me wrong - there are defiantly aspects of the BBC Study that are viable - but I personally feel as though the participants were VERY aware that they were on a TV show:

Here are some papers on the matter:

Reicher. S, & Haslam, A. (2006). Rethinking the psychology of Tyranny: The BBC prison study. British Journal of Social Psychology. 45, 1-40.

Zimbardo. P. G. (2006). Commentary On rethinking the psychology of Tyranny: The BBC Prison Study. British Journal of Social Psychology. 43, 47-53.

There are plenty of papers out there, but I always feel as though it is best to get the information and arguments straight from the horses mouth!

So for the rest of the week I am hoping to finish reading this book and then on to another!

Until next time xx

Sorry about the delay!!

Hello fellow geeklies!

Sorry about the delay with my blog - I've been UBA busy this week but I pinky promise that a blog is defiantly on its way!! 🤓🤓
Please forgive me!!! Xx

Serial - A MUST listen!!

Hello fellow geeklies! 

I am in the process of composing my first topic and that will be ready for next week. The topic for discussion is Social Constructionism!! The what's, the who's, why it matters and its future!!

In the meantime I really really REALLY suggest you listen to this amazing podcast called 'Serial'.

Serial is a two season non-fictional podcast that is narrated by Sarah Koenig.  The podcast follows Sarah's own investigation into a murder at Woodlawn High School, Baltimore, 1999.  A fellow student of the school, and the victims then recent ex-boyfriend, Adnon Syed was arrested and convicted of the murder. The problem? Adnon is still protesting his innocence 17 years on.  

Listening to Sarah and her amazing explation of the year long journey that she has taken fully captures you as a listener and really makes you think and switch from Adnon being guilty to Adnon being innocent. 

I myself am only in the first season but have really enjoyed each episode so far - the podcast highlights issues with eyewitnesses, the justice system but also the amount of pressure that is placed on detectives to find the culprit to a point where serious errors occur that could jeopardise the case as a whole. 

Whilst listening to Sarah you feel as though you are taking the journey with her into finding more about the horrendous murder of a college school girl - but you also are unsure of what is around the corner in regards to evidence that is uncovered and how this would effect Adnon. 

I really do suggest that you give this and try and let me know what you think - below is the link for the first episode:

https://serialpodcast.org/season-one

Happy listening 🤓🤓

Upcoming Topics

Hello fellow geeklies!

I have been thinking of a few topics to blog about over the next few weeks and have so far created the following:

Social Constructionism
The power of Manipulation
Crowd Behaviour
Mental illness 
Profiling 
Necrophilia and other extreme crimes
The Lucifer Effect
Religion and Violence

These are just to name a few of the weekly topics that I will be reading about and hopefully starting some discussions.....if there are any topics that you would like me to study or discuss then please just drop me an email or tweet.  

Apart from that, the first topic will be on by the end of the week--I'll be adding papers, journals, books and relative videos in my discussions so anyone can read and enjoy!!

🤓🤓 xx

All Hail Zimbardo!

Zimbardo and his research is one of the main reasons that I became interested in Psychology. Particularly that of Social Psychology and the workings of humans within social experiments. His Stanford Prison experiment brought about such controversy that it is still the subject of debate to this day!

I absolutely adore and admire Zimbardo, the below video was a TEDtalk that Zimbardo did on the Psychology of Evil - Warning - there are some graphic images in this video that some people may find upsetting.

The video does make you think twice about the workings of an 'evil mind' or whether it is the individual person or the situation that the person is in.....some thought provoking stuff! Let me know what you think!