Dr. Phil (Z) on Dr. Phil

In our latest installment of News About Phillip Zimbardo, a tweet by Social Psychology (@PsychNews) announced that our own Dr. Phil would be on the Dr. Phil show this Monday, October 25. According to the episode summary Dr. Zimbardo is taking his research to the masses:

When Good People Do Bad Things
"Is it possible for a really good person to turn evil? Do you think you have an inner demon that could be triggered to make you rob a bank, steal from a neighbor or torture another human being? Dr. Phillip Zimbardo, professor emeritus at Stanford University and author of The Lucifer Effect: Understanding How Good People Turn Evil, has performed some of the most groundbreaking experiments in the history of psychology. Find out what happens when several Dr. Phil audience members are put to the test! Will they blindly follow instructions from an actor who looks like an authority figure? And, find out how the horrific abuses discovered in 2004 at Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq mimic the results from Dr. Zimbardo’s Stanford Prison Experiment in the 1970s. See the surprising parallel that demonstrates just how easily a good person can be drawn to the dark side. And, find out how an Army Ranger, who says he was following routine orders, would up in prison for bank robbery. Are you susceptible to manipulation by an authority figure? Tune in to find out!"

Okay, I have a question. Isn't "some of the most groundbreaking experiments in the history of psychology" a bit much? I love Dr. Z. like the rest of you, but come on, besides an awesome experiment nearly 40 years ago, has he done another "groundbreaking experiment" that you know of?

All right, point taken, that was probably written by some PR hack who slept through her intro psych classes. I'm setting my DVR on record anyway!

  --posted by Steve

Share