A Situation's First Powers Are Attracting Volunteers and Selecting Participants: A Reply to Haney and Zimbardo (2009)

Abstract

This reply addresses three issues raised by C. Haney and P. G. Zimbardo (2009) in their critique of T. Carnahan and S. McFarland (2007). First, it clarifies Carnahan and McFarland's appreciation of the Stanford Prison Experiment (SPE) but suggests that as a model for the power of situations, the SPE does not adequately consider self-selection and selection by others, both based in part in personal dispositions. Second, it comments briefly on Haney and Zimbardo's critique of Carnahan and McFarland's study and of its applicability to the SPE. Finally, it illustrates the importance of selection and self-selection for situations of torture and suggests their importance for many situations.