involved 600 Black American men who were misled and denied proper treatment for syphilis for 40 years. The study was exposed in 1972, resulted in a $9 million settlement in 1975, and a formal apology from President Bill Clinton in 1997.
The Tuskegee Syphilis Study (1932)
deliberately infected children with mental retardation, aged 3-10 with live hepatitis to study disease progression and test gamma globulin as protection.
The Willowbrook Hepatitis Experiments (1956-1971), led by Dr. Saul Krugman,
involved 24 male college students assigned as guards or prisoners in a mock prison for pay.
The Stanford Prison Experiment (1971), led by Dr. Philip Zimbardo
led by Wendell Johnson of the University of lowa, involved 22 nonconsenting orphan children divided into positive and negative speech therapy groups to test whether stuttering could be learned. Children who received negative feedback developed speech problems and long-term psychological harm, making the study a major ethical violation.
The Monster Study (1939)
conducted by Stanley Milgram, examined obedience to authority by instructing participants to administer electric shocks to a “learner” (an actor) for incorrect answers.
The Milgram Experiment (1961)
no formal assent, Legally Authorized Representative/Guardian sign ICF
Less than 7 yrs old
documented verbal assent; LAR/guadian sign ICF
7 - 12 yrs old
simplified assent form; LAR/guardian sign ICF
12-15 yrs old
ICF signed by participant and LAR/guardian
15-18 yrs old
ICF signed by participant
19yrs old and up