Questions and Answers
What is obedience to authority?
Obedience can be defined as a form of social influence that causes an individual to comply with a direct order given by another individual who is usually regarded as an authority figure.
What was the aim of Milgram's 1963 study?
To determine whether ordinary people will obey a legitimate authority even when required to injure an innocent person.
What was investigated in Milgram's 1963 study?
How authority influences conformity.
Describe the procedure of Milgram's 1963 experiment.
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What methodological issues were identified in Milgram's experiment?
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What ethical issues were raised about Milgram's experiment?
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What criticisms have been made against Milgram's 1963 experiment?
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What support is there for Milgram's 1963 experiment?
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Why do people obey authority figures?
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What is meant by Legitimate Authority?
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What is the concept of Gradual Commitment?
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What is Contractual Obligation in the context of obedience?
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What is the Agentic State?
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What are Buffers in the context of Milgram's experiment?
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Study Notes
Obedience to Authority
- Defined as a form of social influence where individuals comply with orders from authority figures.
Milgram's Study (1963) Aim
- Investigated whether ordinary people would obey authority even to the point of harming an innocent person.
Milgram's Study Overview
- Aim: Explore authority's influence on conformity.
- Participants (teachers) administered shocks to confederate (learner) who answered incorrectly, despite visible distress from the shocks.
- High rates of obedience observed; participants continued shocking the learner even at high voltage levels.
Milgram's Procedure
- 40 male volunteers participated, deceived into believing the study was about learning.
- Fixed lots assigned naive participants as teachers, while confederates acted as experimenter and learner.
- Shock machine used to demonstrate the procedure; learner pretended to feel pain under increasing shocks.
- Experimenter encouraged teachers to continue via prods if they expressed a desire to stop.
Methodological Issues
- Orne & Holland (1968) critiqued the internal validity, suggesting participants recognized the scenario's artificiality and succumbed to demand characteristics.
- External validity questioned due to the experimental situation's difference from real-life scenarios.
Ethical Issues
- Concerns include deception of participants, lack of informed consent, psychological harm, and right to withdraw being compromised.
Further Criticisms
- Darley (1992) questioned moral conversion and obedience justification, while Mandel (1998) presented additional critiques.
Support for Milgram's Findings
- Advocates argue that Milgram's research promotes healthy skepticism towards authority and informed the development of ethical guidelines in psychological research, improving standards.
Reasons for Obedience
- Several factors influence obedience, categorized into situational (context-based) and personality (individual traits).
Legitimate Authority
- People are more likely to obey figures deemed legitimate by societal norms, often regardless of their actual knowledge.
Gradual Commitment
- The foot-in-the-door phenomenon explains that small initial agreements (like minor shocks) make it challenging to refuse larger requests.
Contractual Obligation
- Individuals may feel compelled to continuously participate due to the psychological contract formed upon agreement to take part.
The Agentic State
- Refers to individuals acting as agents of authority, distancing themselves from personal responsibility for their actions.
Buffers
- Buffers mitigate confrontation with consequences of actions. Milgram's variations illustrated that proximity affected levels of obedience; higher obedience occurred with distance from the victim.
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Description
Explore the concepts of obedience to authority through flashcards that delve into key definitions and studies, including Milgram's 1963 experiment. This quiz helps to understand the dynamics of social influence and compliance in various situations.