Foundations & Landmark Studies
Social Psychology explores how people are influenced by others, rooted in Kurt Lewin's formula that behavior is a function of the person and their environment (). Emerging post-WWII to explain mass compliance, three landmark studies defined the field:
| Study | Researcher & Year | Key Finding |
|---|---|---|
| Conformity | Asch (1951) | ~37% conformed to obviously wrong group answers |
| Obedience | Milgram (1961-63) | ~65% delivered max shocks under authority |
| Prison Roles | Zimbardo (1971) | Stopped at 6 of 14 days due to severe stress |
These classic experiments drove the creation of modern research ethics, establishing mandatory informed consent, the right to withdraw, and independent ethical review boards.
Interpreting the Power of Situations
This formula summarizes Milgram's baseline finding where represents the fraction of participants obeying commands up to the maximum danger level.
Common pitfall: concluding that "anyone would do anything under pressure." The precise lesson is that SITUATIONAL factors—such as legitimate authority and gradual escalation—reliably sway behavior far more than we predict, not that individual conscience entirely disappears.