18. Overidentification with a Role
When people become overly immersed in a social role, their behavior can shift dramatically. The Stanford Prison Experiment famously demonstrated how ordinary individuals, acting as prison guards, quickly adopted abusive and authoritarian behaviors. This overidentification can suppress personal values and empathy, making it easier to justify cruelty as simply “part of the job.” When roles override conscience, people may act in ways they never would outside that context—showing how dangerous unchecked authority and identity can become.