The Final Reckoning of the Stanford Prison Experiment

The Final Reckoning…

is a series of articles on the most audacious theater in social science history. Step-by-step, leaving no stone unturned, what truly happened way back in 1971 is revealed. And it was nothing like we were led to believe. Applying narratological principles to detect the flaws in a composed work of art, I uncovered doctored data, planned prisoner releases, and completely fabricated scenes. Further, my research helped surface numerous conflicting accounts, distortions in reported incidents, critical discrepancies, baffling design flaws, logic-defying contradictions, and a whole bunch of conceived drama. Below you can read in minute detail how the plug was pulled.

The Reckoning Part 1: Aftermath of The Lifespan of a Lie

The Reckoning Part 1: Aftermath of The Lifespan of a Lie

Some years ago, two bold men — Ben Blum on Medium and Thibault Le Texier — made a valiant attempt to expose a landmark psychology experiment for a lie. Initially, … Click for more

The Reckoning Part 2: Eshleman’s Deepfake

The Reckoning Part 2: Eshleman’s Deepfake

In part 1 — The Aftermath of The Lifespan of a Lie — I outlined what happened after Ben Blum and Thibault Le Texier tried to topple a science travesty … Click for more

The Reckoning Part 3: John Mark’s Insubordination

The Reckoning Part 3: John Mark’s Insubordination

In The Aftermath of The Lifespan of a Lie, I painted a picture of the recent revelations aimed at toppling a science travesty without success. Seeing psychology’s indifferent reaction to … Click for more

The Reckoning Part 4: Douglas Korpi on trial

The Reckoning Part 4: Douglas Korpi on trial

In The Aftermath of The Lifespan of a Lie, I painted a picture of the recent revelations aimed at toppling a science travesty without success. Psychology’s indifferent reaction to the … Click for more

The Reckoning Part 5: An Orchestrated Apotheose

The Reckoning Part 5: An Orchestrated Apotheose

In The Aftermath of The Lifespan of a Lie, I painted a picture of the recent revelations aimed at toppling a science travesty without success. Psychology’s indifferent reaction to the … Click for more

The Reckoning part 6: The final judgment

The Reckoning part 6: The final judgment

The researchers crafted a compelling allegory. Three storylines — guards spiraling out of control, prisoners suffering, and psychologists losing themselves in their role — gradually became entangled. The storylines propelled … Click for more

The Reckoning part 7: Making sense of the shambles

The Reckoning part 7: Making sense of the shambles

In 2019, Noam Cohen reached Zimbardo by email on Le Texier’s Debunking the Stanford Prison Experiment. Zimbardo did not know American Psychologist had accepted the paper. He was surprised the … Click for more

The Reckoning part 8: Cleansing the Pandemonium

The Reckoning part 8: Cleansing the Pandemonium

We embarked on a journey to get to the bottom of one of psychology’s most notorious experiments. The winding road we traveled through a murky narrative landscape revealed that the … Click for more

The Reckoning part 9: Finishing off the response

The Reckoning part 9: Finishing off the response

The journey is not yet over. There are two remaining issues in Zimbardo’s response that are indirectly related to the simulation. Early publications appeared outside peer-reviewed journals to avoid rejection, … Click for more

The Reckoning part 10: The Narratological Method

The Reckoning part 10: The Narratological Method

I relied on narratological principles to review the Stanford Prison Saga. Narratology is the study of stories with a focus on persuasive elements that convey meaning. Although the art of … Click for more

The Reckoning Overview

The Reckoning Overview

The Final Reckoning of the Stanford Prison Saga is a series of articles on the most audacious theater in social science history. Step-by-step, leaving no stone unturned, what truly happened … Click for more