1                            The Power of the Situation         A week of urban mayhem was ignited by the April 29, 1992 jury acquittal of four white police officers who were captured on videotape beating black motorist Rodney King. The angry response in South Central produced its own brutal footage, most dramatically the live broadcast from a hovering TV news helicopter of two black men striking unconscious with a brick, kicking, and then dancing over the body of, white truck driver Reginald …showed first 75 words of 1572 total…

…showed last 75 words of 1572 total…Powell, Wind, and Briseno were acquitted of charges of brutality toward Rodney King, there ensued a riot in Los Angeles which lasted for three days and took the nation by utter surprise. This is a powerful case which empirically displays that human thought and action are deeply affected by situational influences. The participants constructed a social role that caused them to act contrary to their beliefs, values, and personalities in order to resolve their grievances.