1- Milgram: SOCIAL Flashcards
What area is Milgram from?
Social psychology
What is Milgram on? (1 word)
Obedience
Background
The ‘Germans are different’ hypothesis
After WW2: explanations were sought for the inhuman obedience of Nazi Germans who systematically slaughtered millions of innocent people.
Milgram believed the obedience.could be explained by how Germans are by disposition much more obedient than people from other cultures / countries.
Aim(s)
To investigate the process of obedience; to demonstrate the power of a legitimate authority even when a command requires destructive behaviour.
Design
Controlled observation (in a lab) using self-report.
(Not an experiment because there was no IV).
Sample
- placed advert in a local paper & sent out a mailshot in the post.
- Ps sought for a scientific study related to memory.
- Between age of 20 and 50
- Not high school or college students.
- 40 Ps selected from the 500 who volunteered
- All 40 were men
- various occupational and educational backgrounds.
- self-selected sample
Confederates:
- A biology teacher in a technicians coat played the experimenter.
- A 47 yr old accountant played the learner / victim.
Materials / apparatus
Shock generator
Procedure
- Took place in lab at Yale University (prestigious institution)
- Each Ps told the study aimed to see how punishment affected learning (true aim withheld). Told they would receive $4.59 for participating (it was theirs no matter what).
- Naïve volunteer Ps introduced to other ‘Ps’ (accountant) and lots were drawn for roles of teacher and learner. The true Ps always got teacher.
- Learner and teacher taken to lab where learner strapped into an ‘electric chair apparatus’ to prevent excessive movement when shocks delivered. Electrode attached to learners wrist and connected to shock generator in next room.
- Experimenter advised that no tissue damage would be caused, but would be painful. Teacher experienced a test shock of 45v.
- T read questions to L who sat in separate room in front of 4 way panel to select answers.
- If T expressed desire to stop delivering shocks, the experimenter had a list of statements (prods) e.g. ‘the experiment requires that you continue’, and ‘you have no choice, you must continue’
- When shocks reached 300v the L pounded on the wall, which was repeated until 315v where afterwards they stopped responding (quiet).
SUMMARY:
1. Yale University Lab
2. Told aim: how punishment affected learning (truth withheld). Received $4.50.
3. True Ps introduced to confederate. Drew lots for role of T / L. True Ps always T.
4. L strapped into electric chair + connected to shock generator in next room.
5. E to,e no tissue damage, but would be painful. T given test shock of 45v.
6. T read questions to L who selected answers in separate room.
7. If T desired to stop shocking, E gave prompts e.g., “experiment requires you continue”.
8. At 390v, L pounded on walls up to 315v where they won’t silent.
Results
Quantitative:
- 100% (40) went up to 390v
- 12.5% (5) stopped at critical point of 399v
- 9 stopped between 315v and 375v
- OBEDIENCE: 65% (26/40) continued to 459v (end)
- DISOBEDIENCE: 35% (14/49) stopped at some point before end 450v.
Qualitative:
- Many Ps: showed signs of nervousness (sweat, tremble, stutter, bite their lips etc.)
- 3 Ps: Full-blown uncontrollable seizures were observed.
- Comments: “He’s banging in there. I’m gonna chicken out. I’d like to continue, but 8 can’t do that to a man… I’m sorry I can’t do that to a man. I’ll hurt his heart. You take your [money].’
Conclusion(s)
- People are surprisingly obedient to authority.
- The study demonstrated the power of the situation in obedience, rather than dispositional factors (that Germans are different).
- A significant number of Ps were disobedient.
Evaluation
Research Method and techniques
Study was conducted in controlled lab environment;
Strength:
Variables (e.g., shock levels) are easier to control than when a study is conducted in a natural environment. There are likely to be extraneous variables (other things happening in environment e.g., someone walking in room / phone ringing) which would be distracting and might affect obedience.
Weakness:
Ps are aware their behaviour is being studied. Creates demand characteristics (Ps likely to adjust behaviour & might realise study is on obedience) might lead them to believe shocks aren’t real.
Ethnocentrism
Only Americans involved, - weakness
America reguarded as individualist culture where people more concerned with personal needs than community.
By contrast, many non-Western cultures are collectivist - emphasise importance of group needs above individuals, meaning they may be less likely to obey authority figure due to L’s suffering.
Sampling Bias
Ps were American males.
Strength:
Included men from range of occupational / educational backgrounds (though all from one area of America) so was likely to be representative of the target population. This means that the results in relation to obedience were generalisable to a wider population.
Weakness:
May be important gender differences which limit the generalisability of the results. However, Milgram subsequently did try the same study with women and found similar results, though the women reported experiencing higher levels of stress.
Ethics
Deception: Ps were told the study was about learning and they were also told the electric shocks were real.
There are 2 effects of deception. When Ps later realised they had been deceived, this would lead them to distrust psychologists and psychology in the future, which harms the reputation.
Most importantly, deceptions means they weren’t fully informed about the actual study and therefore were deprived of the right to give informed consent. This is especially important because they were exposed to psychological harm - many of the Ps were very distressed by the experience.
However they were debriefed, a number very positive about the experience and felt they had learned something of importance.
