Experiments (pre-midterm)

Question 1

When prophecy fails - Festinger, Reicken & Schachter (summary, results, significance)

Answer 1

• observational study (type)
• joined a cult who believed the world would end and observed what would happen when it didn’t
• cult members believed their efforts stopped the end of the world instead of leaving the cult
• demonstrated the effects of cognitive dissonance

Question 2

brainstorming - Diehl & Stroebe (summary, results, significance)

Answer 2

• lab experiment
• measured # and quality of ideas produced: alone, in a group, alone but interrupted
• group + interrupted had less & lower quality ideas than alone
• suggests that interruptions in groups or alone reduce our ability to produce ideas

Question 3

urinal experiment - Middlemist et al.

Answer 3

• measured urinal chosen & time taken to start/stop with: confederate in centre urinal, confederate in lateral urinals
• found lateral urinal was always chosen, time took longer when confederate in middle
• suggested that personal space invasions make it more difficult to go

Question 4

Zimbardo’s stanford prison field experiment