06. Factors Affecting Obedience: Individual Differences Flashcards
Describe the authoritarian personality.
Theodor et al (1950) devised the F-scale (fascism scale) to detect authoritarian personality traits. It refers to a person who has extreme respect for authority and is more likely to be obedient to those who hold power over them.
What did Milgram and Elms (1966) conduct involving the F scale?
Milgram and Elms compared F-scale scores with obedient and disobedient participants.
Obedient participants have higher F-scale scores and it was later found that they were less likely to withdraw perhaps because they were submissive to authority figure or had an inclination to punish learner.
What is the authoritarian personality likely a result of?
An authoritarian personality is likely to be the result of harsh parenting in which discipline was a key feature and the expectation of ‘perfect behaviour is common’.
Where does the authoritarian personality originate from?
Forms in childhood as a result of strict disciplinarian parenting (expectation to be completely loyal, impossibly high love, conditional love from parents).
These experiences create hostility and despair in the child, who cannot express these feelings to their parents (due to fear of punishment). instead, these emotions are displaced onto the ‘weak’ (known as scapegoating).
A result of harsh parenting, so these individuals are not likely to defy orders and be submissive to harsh authority figures.
Describe the locus of control.
(Rotter’s 1966)
Locus of control is an individuals idea of who causes their behaviour.
There are two types:
-Internal locus control
-External locus control
Define internal locus control.
They believe their behaviour is caused by their own actions, so they feel responsibly and are less likely to obey as they tend to have more confidence and need little approval from others.
Define external locus control.
They are more likely to obey because they believe what happens to them is out of their control, they believe in fate/chance/luck. They believe what happens to them is determined by external factors and therefore these people are more influenced by others and don’t take responsibility for their actions and are therefore more likely to obey.
Describe gender differences.
(Gender role schema- Bem 1981)
Gender role schema explains individuals develop a sense of gender identity through socialisation they acquire a schema of what it is to be feminine or masculine.
A schema is a cognitive framework that helps organise and interpret information in the world around us.
Role of the schema- we raise children to be more masculine (aggressive) or feminine (passive). Eg in past Christian wedding vows required women to promise to ‘love, honour and obey their husbands.’
Therefore, gender stereotypes affect how we perceive ourselves and others, such as females being perceived to be more obedient than males.
Describe Gilligan’s (1982) Moral Reasoning Gender Differences.
Gilligan (1982) suggested that decisions about moral reasoning are guided by different principles in males and females.
-Ethic of Justice (males)
-Ethic of Care (females)
Describe the ethic of justice (males).
Destructive obedience, males feel an obligation to authority figure and science. They may obey for greater good of society/science and have values of equality and fairness, which requires a detached outlook to avoid bias.
Describe ethic of care (females).
Females feel more empathy to those being harmed for the good of the individual learner. This relates to interpersonal relationships and nurturing and supporting those in need.
Thinking back to Milgram’s findings, what locus of control do obedient people have?
Obedient people have external locus of control:
-More likely to be influenced by an authority figure.
-More likely to believe they are not responsible.
Thinking back to Milgram’s findings, what locus of control do dissenters have?
Dissenters have an internal locus of control:
-More likely to be resistant to authority.
-More likely to take personal responsibility.
Describe Adorno’s (1959) findings.
AO3 Individual Differences: Personality
2000 American students- mainly white middle class.
Interviewed about political views and childhood experiences.
People with authoritarian personalities:
-Identified with ‘strong’ pitied the ‘weak’.
-Were aware of their own social status (and of those around them).
-Showed extreme respect and flattery to those of higher status,
-Patronised those of lower status.
-Were driven by stereotypes and prejudice.
Adorno developed the ‘F-Scale’, a test to measure the authoritarian personality.
Describe Milgram and Elm’s (1966) findings.
AO3 Individual Differences: Personality
Compared ‘F-Scale’ scores on 20 obedient and 20 defiant participants (where obedience was measured by getting them to do the Milgram obedience task).
Results:
-Fully obedient participants- scored higher on tests of authoritarian personality compared to dissenters.
-They found that those who tested highest on the F-Scale, gave more stronger shocks and held the shock buttons down longer than those who were low scorers. They also reported less closeness to their fathers.
