Assignment task: 175 words each
Discussion 1:
Back in elementary school, I recall a time when the entire class was instructed to remain silent during state testing. All the teachers explained that it was to maintain a quiet environment for all students testing in other classrooms, especially during recess and lunch. Most of us students followed the rule, although it felt unfair or unnecessary. I remember feeling confused as to why we all had to stay quiet, especially during recess and lunch. Although I felt confused, I followed directions and stayed quiet like most of the students, mainly because none of us wanted to get in trouble. Looking back now at this experience, it reminds me of Solomon Asch's Conformity Experiment. In that study, the participants gave incorrect answers to match what the rest of the group was saying. Similar to how many of us students disagreed with the new rule during state testing, we went along with it because the majority of everyone was doing so, and we did not want to face the consequences of not following the rule. As a child in elementary school, it was challenging to question authority or group behavior. However, now I have an understanding that the pressure to conform can be strong, especially when you are young. This experience showed me how essential critical thinking is, even when it can be challenging to stand apart from the group. Need Assignment Help?
Discussion 2:
Growing up, I lived in a strict household. I learned early on specific behaviors that were expected from me, and I conformed to those behaviors very quickly to avoid being grounded constantly. I feel like this relates to Phillip Zimbardo, Stanford Prison Experiment, because it shows how easily children can conform to assigned roles or, in some instances, parents can become abusive in different ways when given authority. In this case, my extremely strict father became overly authoritative with my siblings and me, and it seemed everyone was scared to say or question what he did, and it felt for years that we were in a prison watching every move we made. As a child, I was very quiet at home, shy, nervous, and not very social at school because I was scared that I wouldn't be the way I was supposed to be. At home, I never knew what or when I would do something my father disliked. For example, I could look at him, and he would say I made a certain face, and I would be grounded for a month from everything. Honestly, there was no specific face made. As an adult, I look back and think that my father did what he was taught as a child, because I know my father was not terrible; he just didn't know how to express emotions with us or how to deal with issues within himself.