In 1971, a Stanford University researcher conducted a psychological experiment where 24 student volunteers were divided into the roles of prison guards and prisoners, and played out their roles in a prison setup in a basement at the university. The experiment had to be called off early, as the students given the role of guards began to exhibit sadistic behavior toward the students playing the prisoners, who began to show signs of psychological trauma themselves.
While the set-up and conduct of the experiment have drawn criticism, it's hard to evaluate the behaviors observed without a sense of astonishment and horror at what some people with a sense of authority can do to others. I believe that a valid conclusion that can be drawn from the Stanford University prison experiment is that, over time, anybody perceiving themselves in a morally or intellectually superior role with respect to another specific set of people, combined with a sense of authority, will manifest monstrous behavior.
And now, on a completely different subject, I'd like to evaluate if the people who audit systems and subsystems are subject to influences that might lead them to believe that:
What do I mean by monstrous auditor behavior? Well, if a multi-million-dollar program office is about to have its reputation demolished (or future work denied) on the basis of a finding that focuses on a minute, legalistic "violation" that has nothing to do with the genuine advancement of project management, then the people who wrote such findings might want to do a quick check to make sure those who put them up to the audit are not wearing white lab coats and holding clipboards.
While the set-up and conduct of the experiment have drawn criticism, it's hard to evaluate the behaviors observed without a sense of astonishment and horror at what some people with a sense of authority can do to others. I believe that a valid conclusion that can be drawn from the Stanford University prison experiment is that, over time, anybody perceiving themselves in a morally or intellectually superior role with respect to another specific set of people, combined with a sense of authority, will manifest monstrous behavior.
And now, on a completely different subject, I'd like to evaluate if the people who audit systems and subsystems are subject to influences that might lead them to believe that:
- They are in a position of intellectual or moral superiority over the ones being audited
- They are in a position of authority, and
- These perceptions are consistently held over time.
What do I mean by monstrous auditor behavior? Well, if a multi-million-dollar program office is about to have its reputation demolished (or future work denied) on the basis of a finding that focuses on a minute, legalistic "violation" that has nothing to do with the genuine advancement of project management, then the people who wrote such findings might want to do a quick check to make sure those who put them up to the audit are not wearing white lab coats and holding clipboards.
This standford study is not new to the experimentation of role playing. If you look way back in history there was a classroom that identified half the class as brown and the other as white....the conclusions..were monsterous...well..it definitely showed, at the time, how differently people were treated and the distribution of power.
And that was on the color of skin...(I wish I could reference the study..but I am sure it's accessible)