In 1920, Dr John Watson experimented with the formation of fear and phobias in human babies. That sentence alone should be setting off your unethical psychology alarm bells at this point. The one and only unfortunate baby that Watson got his hands on for this experiment was a nine-month-old who was assigned the pseudonym Little Albert. The basic idea of the study was to expose Albert to a number of stimuli including a rabbit, a dog, a monkey and a white rat. If ever Albert reached out to touch the rat, the experimenters would swing a hammer at a metal bar dangling just above his head. The hammer made a very loud noise which invariably upset Albert. Subsequently, the child developed a phobia of the rat; crying and attempting to crawl away when it was brought out. Over time, this phobia seemed to extend to all sorts of white or furry stimuli including dogs, rabbits, cotton wool and even Father Christmas beards. Worst of all, Albert was removed from the experiment before Watson could attempt to reverse the effects. There might not have been any fatalities with this one but theres got to be a special place in Hell reserved for doctors who teach babies to fear Santa.
Peter Austin initially joined WhatCulture as an occasional contributor to our Film, Gaming and Science sections, but made the mistake of telling us that he'd been making videos in his bedroom for over a decade. Since then he's been a vital member of our YouTube team and routinely sets the standard for smart-casual wear in the office.
